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The importance of water play

Posted 10 07 2018

in News

Young children enjoy the opportunity to interact with the water at their own pace.
Young children enjoy the opportunity to interact with the water at their own pace.
“There’s a growing awareness around the importance of unstructured play for children,”

Landscape architect Sarah Collins has done a lot of work in the area of children’s play in both early childhood centres and public parks. Based in Auckland, she’s a partner at Boffa Miskell and heads up a specialist team who are passionate about children’s play and who work predominantly in that area.

“My family lived in two different homes as my sisters and I grew up, and both were beside the Waimairi stream,” she says.

“We tried to fish for the trout that swam in the stream. We had a kayak and tried various other floating devices. Over the years, we learned a huge amount from living in that environment.

“That background, together with the work that I do, has led me to thinking about the benefits of providing water-play and the wide range of opportunities to do so within our towns and cities.”

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