Like all children, children with reduced mobility love to play, but regular playgrounds are not accessible for children in wheelchairs. This is why the Children’s Foundation, with the help of our generous donors, is helping to build two accessible playgrounds – one in Pärnu and the other one in Tartu – where children with reduced mobility can play together with others.
The aim is to create accessible playgrounds that take into account children with special needs, including the needs of children with reduced mobility. The playgrounds include for example sandboxes where children can lay down instead of sitting up and climbing areas accessible by wheelchair. This results in an environment where all children can move, play and spend their time.
The accessible playground in Pärnu was built in the green area in front of Pärnu Hospital so that children who need to stay in the hospital for longer can also benefit from it. For the same reason, the Tartu playground will be built next to the new children’s clinic of Tartu University Hospital, in the park behind Puusepa street 2.
In addition to younger children, the accessible playgrounds are also important for young people in wheelchairs. The playgrounds include wheelchair tracks where they can practice different ways to move with the wheelchair and in general become familiar with using a wheelchair.
In addition to building new accessible playgrounds, we have also supported the completion of stages II and III of the accessible playground at Haapsalu Neurological Rehabilitation Centre.
On 1 June 2023, we celebrated the opening of the Pärnu accessible playground and stage III improvements of the accessible playground at Haapsalu Neurological Rehabilitation Centre. The accessible playground in the green area in front of Pärnu Hospital includes a fun climbing court, a trampoline accessible for wheelchair users, a sandbox offering different ways to play and an octopus that children can climb on.
Building the Pärnu accessible playground cost 177 987 euros. We supported the completion of stage III of the accessible playground at Haapsalu Neurological Rehabilitation Centre with 120 000 euros. Based on current information, the planning and construction of the Tartu accessible playground is estimated to cost 660 264 euros.
Therefore, thanks to our generous donors, the Children’s Foundation is supporting the creation of accessible playgrounds for children with special needs with 958 251 euros.