Accessible play area to be built for SEND children

A survey by disability charity Scope previously found few playgrounds in Oxfordshire have many accessible features

Plans for an accessible playground to make life easier for SEND children and families have taken a step forward.

Littlemore Parish Council has chosen a supplier for the play area, which will have rides suitable for a range of disabilities and special needs.

Features could include a sensory area, wheelchair-friendly equipment and a communications board for non-verbal children.

Rose Carter, who runs an SEN learning provider and has been advising the council, said: "It's really important that these vital spaces are inclusive for our community.

"If you get things right for children and young people with SEND needs then you get it right for everybody - but it doesn't always work the other way round.

"Unless things are fully accessible, people with a physical or learning won't be able to take part in things and be a full member of the community - and surely that's what we we want."

The current site includes swings, a log walk and picnic benches.

Littlemore Parish Council submitted an Invitation to Tender for the site in April, meaning contractors and suppliers could bid to take on the building work.

An allocation of £90,000 in Community Infrastructure Levy money has been made to the project.

A investigation by disability charity Scope in 2023 found only two out of the 19 playgrounds they visited in Oxfordshire met a high standard of accessibility.

They assessed the sites on criteria like step-free access, colourful equipment, wheelchair-friendly equipment and handrail support.