New play area scheme given go-ahead at Westonbirt Arboretum

New plans have been funded at Westonbirt, The National Arboretum to enhance its play offer for children, as it looks to invest in its core family audience amid a significant rise in visitors.

Funded by The Friends of Westonbirt Arboretum (The Friends) and Forestry England, the first development phase is now underway and scheduled for completion at the end of August, as part of the venue’s 10-year play strategy. The Friends has approved funding of £127,000, with additional investment being made by the Forestry England Investment Team.

Phase one plans include development of two of its distinctive play zones in the Old Arboretum. The brief is all about enabling every child, at every stage of development, to engage in play that challenges, encourages, and stimulates them. From toddlers learning to grapple with climbing skills to older children engaging in risky play, and children with different abilities working to stretch their limits. It is essential that the new zones give every child opportunity, and that they enable every child to play together, or alone, with or without parents and carers too.

This overall scheme will create an accessible, open, nature inspired zone of play to compliment the environment, with each part being curated to emulate nature. It will promote space and off-path exploration, further encouraging children to engage, as well as thrive, in nature. The design incorporates many distinctive features including the birdbox, an elevated boardwalk, tree nets offering canopy views, and speaking tubes mimicking the mycelium root structure of fungi. By providing ramp access alongside other entry points, it ensures that children of all abilities can enjoy and explore the play zones together. Additionally, it offers a variety of play types, with adventurous, physical activities alongside quieter, more creative ones. The scheme includes an observation point onlooking the quiet play space; a crucial feature for those on the autism spectrum. This allows children to observe and acclimatise to the space, facilitating an easier transition and providing a dedicated, calm area where they can more effectively prepare to play. This variety caters to different age ranges (including parents and carers), as well as different levels of support needs, assisting with the development of social skills and enhancing imaginative play.

Concepted by play designers Earth Wrights, the project is a collaboration between them, Westonbirt's team, its focus groups and fundraisers. The purpose is to refresh and improve the existing offer as well as to increase visitor numbers. It also aims to better its experience for families visiting with children, particularly those aged 4 to 8 and those with additional needs, to promote an inclusive environment to learn through nature.

Emma Griffiths, CEO of The Friends comments “Supporting and helping fund development in the arboretum is what we are all about; supporting them to improve connection with the trees and underpinning vital conservation work in the collection. We are excited that the first phase of play has been funded, and we’re looking now to fundraise for phases two and three. The scope and plan for phase one will seek to ensure every child is included, with space for multigenerational play as well. We’re excited about the contribution we are making to future enjoyment of the arboretum.”
 
Neil Seegobin, Project Manager at Westonbirt Arboretum said: “Westonbirt Arboretum offers the ultimate natural playground and thanks to The Friends and Forestry England, this project has provided us with scope for more ambitious pieces to encourage further interactive and exploratory experiences through nature, with the whole family. Through our new innovative and inspiring play offer, we’re updating and keeping experiences fresh for young visitors, and we hope this in turn helps generate new visitors and more re-visits.
 
“Visitor numbers have grown significantly since installation of the Treetop Walkway and investment is needed to keep the family audience engaged and to entice new visitors to explore the arboretum. This development enables us to widen our offer to visitors and this new play also provides an inclusive experience. This builds on our wider work through the community programme and other on-site changes to make Westonbirt more inclusive and accessible to a wider audience.”
 
Beyond just being ‘fun’, play provides multiple benefits to children’s development such as increased self-awareness and self-esteem; improved physical and mental health and building resilience; as well as serving as a confidence booster through developing new skills, promoting independence and creativity. This fuels Westonbirt’s ethos of offering fun and engaging visits so that people will be receptive to learning more about the causes and to support them through a lifelong relationship with the arboretum.
 
In 2025 and 2026, a further two new natural play areas will be installed, in two phases.
It will include two zones in the dog-friendly Silk Wood as well as redevelopment of Exploratree, its former play area aimed at the younger age group. The Friends has agreed to fundraise to deliver phases two and three, and is seeking donations through grants and private donors. To contribute to the next phase of play, please make a donation or become a member of The Friends.
A date for the phase one opening will be announced by Westonbirt Arboretum in due course.