It’s now a week into the school holidays and many children and
young people will be accessing a range of local activities. When
people remember their school days, their best memories are
usually around the long summer days of the holidays, playing
outside with friends, often out with immediate adult
supervision. Whilst sunshine might seem like a distant memory
this summer, many of today’s children are also less likely to
have access to the same range of play experiences that their
parents will remember being part of. Whenever images of the old
Venchie playgrounds are publicised, they generate comment and
stories as people remember playing there. From the early days of
Wester Hailes there was a recognition that local children,
particularly those living in the high rises needed access to
somewhere where there was adventurous play with sand, water,
building materials and climbable structures. The playgrounds
were altered on a regular basis in response to children’s
comments and suggestions. In 1979 in a story on