So what is Ringworld?
The aim of Ringworld is to provide an environment in which all children can play. By children we mean any child from birth to the age of 18, and by all children we mean ALL children.
We understand that play is something that children do, that they are in control of, that they make the choices about what they do, when they do it, and how they do it. Children’s play is not controlled or led by adults.
The Ringworld playwork team exist to support the children’s play and to support the children in creating their own boundaries so that one child’s play does not negatively impact on another’s.
The Ethos
The Kit
To create the Ringworld environment the playwork team bring rings that are constructed from a woven PVC and inflated using a hand held blower. The structures that we currently use are 4 metre and 8 metre rings, 1 metre and 2 metre balls, sausages that are approximately 1.5 metres by 0.75 metre, tubes that are 30 metres by 0.3 metre, 1.5 metre dice and the “star of the show” a 15 metre wide octopus. This is a 4 metre ring with 8 legs of various sizes and shapes. All the structures of Ringworld can be manipulated and articulated by the children and young people that are using it and the playwork team also move the equipment around to create different affordances and opportunities for the children.