Life-changing play centre: parents welcome UK plans for disabled children

A centre built for access

Stephanie Wheen began working more than a decade ago to create a UK play and leisure centre designed specifically for disabled children. Gympanzees will be the first UK site of its type, near Bristol, on the site of a former service station by the Severn Bridge.

The centre took three years to design. It will include 10 spaces, such as a music room, gym, trampoline and climbing area, dark and light sensory rooms, and a fully accessible outdoor play park.

Trial sessions showed demand

Before finding a permanent home, the charity ran sessions to test the idea. The article says children’s physical and mental health improved quickly: some walked, sat upright or rolled over independently for the first time, while others laughed in new ways. Families travelled as long as eight hours to attend.

Families seek room to play

The centre plans to offer sessions matched to children’s needs. Butterfly sessions are for children with complex medical needs, leopard sessions for those with sensory needs, and gorilla sessions for children who find socialising challenging.

Kelly Cotter said her son Adam, 15, is non-verbal and uses a wheelchair. She could take him to play areas when he was younger, but found it harder as he grew. She said the centre’s scale could give children more choice about what to do.

A wider ambition

Gympanzees will also have a party room with DJ equipment controlled by eye-gaze technology. Garland said some children aged 10 and 12 had never had a party because they could not find a suitable venue.

Wheen wants 12 more centres across the country, with the goal of every child living within an hour of Gympanzees. The article also includes a parent’s account of being judged when her child became distressed in public and of concerns about safety in venues.