Parents start initiative: children's festival for new playground in Flintbek!

Parents start initiative: children's festival for new playground in Flintbek!

Things are unusually quiet on Mühlensteinweg in Flintbek. The playground, a place that once housed children's laughter and cheerful hopping, is in a barely attractive condition. The seesaw is little more than a shadow of its former self, the swing looks as if it hasn't been used for weeks and the large slide has even been dismantled. Mother Jaqueline Schroeder makes it clear that such circumstances are no longer acceptable and criticizes the lack of attractiveness and the lack of shaded areas for the little ones. Alongside her, numerous parents decided to take on an initiative to bring the playground back to life. They are planning a children's party to raise donations and collect money through various activities that will flow into the redesign of the playground. The goal of their efforts is clear: an adventure playground with a spacious sandy area and an exciting tipi tunnel.

In order to realize their plans, the committed parents have set up a GoFundMe account. The planned children's festival will take place on July 19th from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. and promises exciting activities: from a stand with coffee and cake to a station for braiding hair and face painting to a creative station, everything is on offer to make the hearts of little adventurers beat faster. Mayor Stefan Bettin has heard about the parents' wishes and is informed about the efforts being made to improve the local playground situation. A working group for playgrounds has already been set up and a survey among parents and children is currently underway.

Parent initiatives as role models

There are similar efforts in the Flintbek neighborhood. A parents' initiative in Rönne, Elbmarsch, is planning to build a natural playground on the old football field “Am Redder”. The initiative, consisting of Tanja Langfeld, Claudia Hinsche and Anna-Maria Neuenstadt, has set itself the goal of creating a playground for small children that is freely accessible. Equipment such as a net swing, seesaw, sandpit and a huge slide are planned. A large children's festival is also being organized here, with bouncy castles, a foam kissing machine and a flea market. A total of 20,000 euros are needed to realize it, and the parents are determined to start work this year.

The importance of playgrounds

In Germany, initiatives to improve scope are becoming increasingly important. Active participation in the design of playgrounds is required not only in Flintbek or Rönne, but in many regions. The aim of such projects is to renovate, supplement or redesign play spaces in order to offer creative play opportunities. The focus is not only on the range of play equipment, but also on their experience. Children and young people should be actively involved in the planning process - the project in Flintbek can also benefit from this. Ultimately, it is important that these places are publicly and freely accessible to all children and young people.

Support from local and regional funding programs, such as the playground initiative, could offer valuable help. Up to 8,000 euros are made available there for the renovation or new construction of play spaces, although no applications for play space projects are currently possible. Alternatively, parents and neighbors can submit an application via the Spielraum theme fund to create better play opportunities for their children and thus increase the quality of life in their residential areas.