The Queen to build huge adventure playground at Sandringham
The Queen’s Sandringham Estate is to play host to a sprawling adventure playground, featuring treehouses modelled on famous royal buildings.
The playground, at the heart of the 20,000-acre Norfolk estate, will include swings, slides, a zipwire and raised walkways.
A number of its designs were inspired by buildings on the estate, including the Grade II-listed St Mary Magdalene Church, where the Royal Family traditionally attends a Christmas Day service and where Princess Charlotte was christened in 2015.
A secret enclosed play structure was inspired by Queen Alexandra's Nest, a summerhouse built in 1913 on the rockery overlooking the lake.
The centrepiece of the playground will be an eight-metre tall version of the Appleton Water Tower, inspired by the Victorian landmark built in 1877 to improve the quality of the water supply to Sandringham House.
It will feature a 14-metre tube slide, a spiral staircase, ladders, a climbing wall, water play tables with pumps at the top and bottom and talking tubes for children to communicate between floors.
A ruined-church play structure was inspired by the ivy-clad ruin of St Mary’s church, near the village of West Newton, close to the heart of the estate.
A toddler play space, comprising two play houses with connecting bridges, will be also be set among the trees, according to plans submitted to King's Lynn and West Norfolk Council, which granted permission for the development on Friday, November 20.
The Duchess of Cambridge, who designed her own Back to Nature garden for last year's Chelsea Flower Show, is likely to be delighted by the plans.
The Duchess has long championed the importance of outdoor play for children, believing it pivotal for future health and happiness.
Last September, she opened a children’s playground at RHS Wisley in Surrey, inspired by her garden, featuring a rope swing, teepee hideaway and a treehouse to encourage children to immerse themselves in nature.
The Cambridges spend many weekends and holidays at Anmer Hall, their home on the Sandringham Estate, meaning that Prince George, seven, Princess Charlotte, five, and Prince Louis, two, could become regular visitors to the new attraction, which will replace an existing, smaller play area.
The estate welcomes approximately 500,000 visitors a year and the Royal Family is keen that it retains its appeal.
Sandringham House, where the royals gather for Christmas, is nestled within 60 acres of formal gardens.
While the house and gardens open to visitors at certain times of the year, a visitors' centre, featuring a café and gift shop, transport museum and country park also prove popular.
St Mary Magdalene Church, which sits within the country park, would also be open to the public but remains closed due to the pandemic.
The current play area is described in planning documents as a “vital part of the offering” on the estate but one that could be vastly improved to create “themed elements, distinct and unique to Sandringham.”
The new playground has been designed by Creating Adventurous Spaces Ltd, which has been advised to plant bat-friendly flowers around the site and to install three bat boxes and two bird boxes on trees.
Planners were told the site would benefit from a wildflower planting scheme to increase the foraging opportunities for bats and pollinators.
The cost of the project has not been disclosed.
