About Serious Play

This was a truly exciting pilot project which went on to create the potential to be developed on a national level. Serious Play has - we think- successfully inspired the next generation to have fun, while switching on the power for a more sustainable future.

Children need to burn energy. Communities need playgrounds. Dott’s cutting-edge design idea knitted these two needs together to create a brighter future for the community. The project managed the development of a new play experience that can generate energy through play. The skills summoned in the process have been fed back into the community, embedding sustainable energy production and a design legacy in the area.

The Cornwall Council Play Pathfinder team, one of the project’s key players, earmarked a potential site at the new DCSF funded Play Pathfinder Adventure Playground which is under development at Gweal an Top in Redruth. By adopting Dott’s people-led design approach, the community were engaged in the design process from start to finish. Expert support to steer the design of the play experience and manage the build of the prototype has been provided by David Buurma and Mike Hawes from Mor Design working with Will and Sam Boex of Boex Ltd, Dr Joanna Henley of Sciart Solutions and Amy Charman of aCADmy.

Extensive research has already been carried out in the arenas of local and national play policy and adventure playgrounds, current playground equipment developments and industry requirements, plus micro-generation systems and energy production.

Serious Play has co-developed and built a prototype for new adventure play experience - ready to take forward to big players such as an Olympic Playground for 2012. In summary, our  playtime has ( and continues to) celebrated its part in making local energy generation accessible, educational and part of community-based fun.