Challenge

After the success of Massey & Harris' football themed installation at Cathedral Gardens, Manchester, the company was invited to tender, against many well-established play suppliers, for a second larger and more prominent play scheme in the prestigious location of Piccadilly Gardens; the portal to the rest of the city.

Manchester City Council allowed a challenging budget and smaller space than anticipated, and was looking for unique play features with an architectural aesthetic. Given the location, there was a requirement for the equipment to be extremely durable and incredibly safe, yet still provide exciting and developmental play opportunities.

Solution

Massey & Harris approached the scheme with a blank sheet of paper, wishing to use only bespoke, one-off pieces to showcase the ability of the company's mechanical designers and manufacturers. Height was given to the scheme in the form of a large mound with retaining wall and then all equipment was designed and built around it.

Massey & Harris wanted to provide a truly unique, complex and impressive centrepiece, constructed from polished stainless steel. 'Dilly' the snail slide was born, setting the overall 'Piccadilly Garden' theme for the area. This aided in the development of the spinning, climbing, rocking, and audible and developmental pieces.  

The site includes:

  • 1.8m-high Daisy spinner
  • 2x 4m-high Sapling spinners with laser-cut floral crowns
  • Roots 'n' Seeds climbing rails with mirror polished spheres
  • Snail Food stepping stones: varied textures for sensory development
  • Dilly the 1.6m snail slide, featuring a fun crawl tunnel
  • 1.0m Tulip spinner
  • 2x snail-themed spring rockers
  • 6 huge powder-coated chimes
  • 2x stainless steel Chatter Tubes

The area was surfaced with high-quality and durable artifical grass to finish off the natural feel of the installation.

Outcome

Since opening early in the summer of 2014 the site has been inundated with children of varying ages and abilities. Thanks to Massey & Harris' tandem contract to rejuvenate the Piccadilly Gardens benches there is also a comfortable place for carers / parents to sit while the kids play.

The area has given Manchester city centre its second play area, providing the increasing number of city centre residents with somewhere local to take their kids to spend some of their abundant energy.

There has been a good amount of buzz surrounding the installation and Manchester has been named the most child-friendly city in the UK.