Projects - Play Innovation

Play Innovation wins prestigious SAPCA Award for inclusive sports and play areas

Simon Boi — Tue, 05 Mar 2024 20:34:08 +0000

A fantastic collaboration between Play Innovation, L&Q Group and Axis Europe has been recognised with a prestigious SAPCA Award. The partnership worked together to create inclusive play areas at Silwood Street Ball Court Zone and Pocket Park Play Area in London. On 29 February, the project won the SAPCA Award for Small Sports or Play Project of the Year.

The project

Following consultation with the client and the local community, L&Q set Play Innovation a challenge to design a family-inclusive sports area which would help tackle inactivity and inequality, providing social value to the area.

Play Innovation took a holistic approach to the brief and meticulously designed an award-winning scheme to resounding success.

With inclusivity built into the heart of the design, Play Innovation created a multi-use games area (MUGA) featuring its patented target games, including the innovative Corner Skills, Street Snooker and Crossbar King. Elsewhere, the outer areas were re-landscaped to provide entirely new and safe access routes to and through the activity zones.

To encourage everyone to enjoy the space – regardless of age or ability – there are also informal seating, personal training zones, mini athletics and table tennis tables. Combined, the different areas create numerous opportunities for all members of the community to enjoy and to stay active.

Play Innovation founder, Marco Boi, said: “We have been innovating and creating physical activity experiences and solutions since 2010, continuously listening to people of every age, of every ethnicity and across all genders, in order to understand their needs and to better design outdoor spaces to tackle inactivity. We were given the opportunity by L&Q and Axis Europe to create something special – which has now been recognised by us winning a SAPCA Award for the project. This really is a huge achievement for us and will hopefully help raise Play Innovation’s profile as an advocate of good design in ball courts, inclusive spaces and outdoor activity zones.”

The awards

The SAPCA Awards are organised by the Sports and Play Construction Association (SAPCA) and each year recognise two outstanding facility projects which showcase the very best in quality, technical excellence and social value. SAPCA is the recognised trade association for the sports and play construction sector with more than 220 members.

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The post Play Innovation wins prestigious SAPCA Award for inclusive sports and play areas first appeared on Play Innovation.

Nike Intersport – Future of Play

Simon Boi — Tue, 05 Mar 2024 20:25:59 +0000

Intersport asked creative agency HarrimanSteel to help it further grow its successful Play Your Way campaign. Play Innovation was brought on board as the leading play consultant to conceptualise, co-design and build an entirely new product for the campaign. The result was the creation of a multi activity “Cube”, set within a playful, visually-striking 170m2 installation which turned the traditional idea of what a sports arena should look like on its head. Around the Cube, ‘loose’ equipment was added to inspire children and young people to find new ways to play and to introduce them to the Nike (Kids) brand.

The arena ended up going to five cities in three different countries in just three weeks.

Marco Boi, Play Innovation founder, said: “We came up with the Cube idea based on previous ideas and concepts we had been toying with – and Nike loved it.“We knew that, in order to make a memorable experience, we needed to make it fun, visually striking, and agile enough to load into a truck for touring across three countries/five cities in three weeks. “To see the final product was amazing and to receive such amazing feedback from children – across three countries – was the icing on the cake.”

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London Sport and Play Innovation working together to get people active

Simon Boi — Tue, 05 Mar 2024 20:24:23 +0000

Play Innovation and London Sport have signed a two-year partnership deal which will see the organisations working together to create spaces to help young Londoners and their families enjoy being active – and build positive physical activity habits for life.

One of these projects includes the distribution of £5.7m of investment over the next three years to help schools open up their facilities outside of school hours. Play Innovation will be providing special and exclusive offers and support to schools to help them transform their active spaces with innovative and engaging play equipment so more young Londoners can easily engage with exercise in a fun and interactive environment.

As part of the two-year partnership, Play Innovation was also an Official Partner and sponsor of the Supporting Young Londoners category at this year’s London Sport Awards which brought together community sports clubs, activity providers, volunteers and businesses to celebrate the unsung heroes who are improving the lives of Londoners through sport and physical activity. 

All 10 category winners of the Awards will receive an interactive gaming product from Play Innovation, including products like their Street Snooker or Goal Master worth up to £1,600.

Marco Boi, founder of Play Innovation, said: “We believe in the transformative power of sport and physical activity, which is why we’re so excited to work with London Sport to bring our ideas and products to communities who need them most. “ Bringing together our collective expertise and innovation, this partnership will no doubt benefit the wider sector and help us deliver a more active future for thousands of young Londoners.”

Tanya Rabin, London Sport’s Director of Commercial, Marketing and Communications, added:
“We are delighted to be partnering with Play Innovation and collaborate with them to help more young Londoners enjoy being active and create positive physical activity habits for life. Physical inactivity is responsible for one in six premature deaths, and over half of young Londoners are not doing the recommended levels of exercise. Play Innovation shares our ambition to make a real impact in communities and improve the health and wellbeing of young people through sport and play. As a leader in transforming recreational spaces and creating innovative playground game concepts, we’re looking forward to working together to excite, engage and ultimately help more young Londoners live healthier more active lives.”

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Play Innovation helps L&Q deliver £1m transformation of playgrounds and active spaces

Simon Boi — Tue, 05 Mar 2024 20:14:47 +0000

Play Innovation, a global leader in tackling inactivity in children, young people and adults with their interactive yet non-electronic target games and play equipment, is helping housing association L&Q transform a number of underused playground areas into modern and safe spaces for everyone to enjoy.

L&Q has invested £1m specifically for the improvements of seven community playgrounds in London and Essex. Working together, Play Innovation and property services provider, Axis Europe, have redesigned and rejuvenated derelict and unused areas into inclusive, safe and friendly spaces for L&Q’s residents and local communities to enjoy and be proud of.

Among the projects were the Pocket Park play area and the Silwood Street Ball Court Zone in South East London – both if which have been reconstructed and brought back to life.

The investment in the parks include the installation of Play Innovation’s Hype multi-sports goals with colourful sensory basketball backboards, inclusive play and sport target games Street Snooker X and Crossbar King, a new outdoor gym by TGOGC and personal training zone for use by local PT’s and cross fit fans.

The new facilities are designed to tackle inactivity and inequality and to inspire people to become physically active in a fun, engaging way, as part of L&Q’s commitment to creating thriving neighbourhoods and sustainable communities.

According to Marco Boi, founder of Play Innovation and lead designer/consultant for the programme, L&Q’s mission aligns perfectly with the Play Innovation’s ethos of tackling inactivity and delivering impactful social value through the creation of engaging, active spaces.

Boi said: “As a father of two teenage daughters I know the importance of creating safe spaces for them to enjoy and be active.

“A well thought-out space should entertain and involve anyone regardless of age, ability or background. We’re excited to see the finishing touches being added and to officially launch these projects for L&Q.”

The post Play Innovation helps L&Q deliver £1m transformation of playgrounds and active spaces first appeared on Play Innovation.