My initiative is designed for and delivered in London
Yes
I am 18 years of age or above, by the application deadline.
Yes
My organisation is a registered UK entity and has a London-based address.
Yes
My organisation is a non-profit (e.g. school, university, or local authority) — not a for-profit, which can only join as a partner.
Yes
If there is a for-profit organisation as a partner in my initiative, they work on a cost-recovery basis only.
Yes
My solution is implemented at scale, or if not, I have a clear business plan, a minimum viable solution (prototype, pilot, or proof of concept), evidence of access to a lease for the space you are leveraging, and evidence of work or impact in London within your coalition.
Yes
I am aware that, if I am submitting more than one application to a Challenge run by Ashoka and Go! London, only one of them is able to progress through the stages.
Yes
Are you an employee (and their children and grandchildren) of Ashoka or any of its respective affiliates and participating advertising and promotion agencies?
No
I have read and accepted the Challenge Terms & Conditions.
Yes
First Name
Gemma
Last Name
Tully
Pronouns
She/Her
Email address
I would like to receive notifications and updates about Go London!, Ashoka, Ashoka Changemakers, and other Ashoka opportunities.
1
Are you an Ashoka Fellow?
No
Are you applying from an organization founded by an Ashoka Fellow?
No
If you are applying from an organization founded by an Ashoka Fellow, please specify the name and organisation of the fellow below.
Lead Organisation Name
London Borough of Newham
Year that you started/ registered your organisation
1965
Initiative Title
Play for All
My initiative is designed for and delivered in London
1
Website URL(s) or Social Media Handles
https://www.newham.gov.uk/
Initiative Stage
Idea (You have a solid concept and are hoping to get started in the future)
Sectors/Themes: What topic does your project most directly relate to?
Children & Youth
Initiative Summary: Describe your initiative in one sentence
A bright, fun, accessible and fully inclusive Play Hub where all children and young people including those with SEND and additional needs can dive into sensory‑rich adventures, get moving with exciting physical play opportunities, and enjoy joyful outdoor exploration—supported by family‑friendly spaces that make everyone feel welcome.
The Problem: What problem are you helping to solve and who will benefit the most from your solution? How close are you to the problem and/or community impacted?
Newham has one of the youngest most diverse populations in the country making equitable access to play and outdoor spaces essential. This is particularly important for children with SEND many of whom have limited access to outdoor/green space, reducing opportunities to be active. Play is not a luxury; it is a fundamental right under the UN Convention Rights of the Child and a vital contributor to healthy child development. Investment in play delivers proven benefits, particularly for physical health helping to tackle sedentary behaviour and childhood obesity. Newham has 85 public play spaces. With a child population of 96,300, this amounts to 1 playground per 1,100 children, significantly below the London average. Many current play areas are not inclusive or accessible and often lack wheelchair friendly structures or sensory equipment. 12.8% of children in Newham (over 12,000) identify as SEND. For these children, unstructured outdoor play offers vital opportunities for social connection, physical development, and inclusion. Ensuring that play spaces are accessible and inclusive is crucial, enabling these children and their siblings, to participate fully alongside their peers. Consultation highlights: 27% of residents said better play facilities would encourage them to be more active, 90% of SEND families want their children to play outside more often. 60% of SEND carers reported that current playgrounds do not meet their children’s needs. As a Public Health Play & Parks Officer, it is essential to ensure that public spaces meet the diverse needs of all residents. Creating an innovative, accessible, and inclusive play space for children of all ages, abilities, and backgrounds will be a key step toward achieving equitable opportunities for all to be healthy, active.
Your approach: How are you/ will you addressing the problem outlined above? How does your solution unlock or reimagine access to spaces for sport and physical activity? What role do landowners, local authorities, or other decision-making stakeholders play in your approach? We'd love to know about the origin of your idea, and what was your "aha" moment" that led you to take action?
We will address the shortage of accessible and inclusive play spaces by transforming one of our existing playgrounds into an innovative, fully accessible Play Hub for families. The redesigned space will reflect key priorities identified by children and families ensuring not only easier access but also supporting them to stay, play, and use the space comfortably through features such as accessible toilet facilities and a café. The identified play space currently lacks any accessible equipment but already benefits from said on site toilets & café. This project will fully redevelop the playground to introduce a comprehensive range of accessible play features, including wheelchair accessible climbing structures, tandem swings, inclusive seesaws/roundabouts, and open areas that support independent movement. In addition, sensory/exploratory play zones will feature as part of the design. These improvements will create a high quality, fully inclusive environment that enables children with disabilities to participate in meaningful physical activity, support their social and sensory development, and remove barriers to accessing safe, engaging outdoor play. As the landowner, the Council will lead this project, working closely with key stakeholders; including Inclusion Matters Network, local families, London Play, and the Friends of the Park, to inform our approach and shape a design that truly reflects community needs. Although we recognised the importance of investing in more inclusive & accessible play spaces, the urgency for action was strengthened through consultation and engagement with families and through our emerging Play Vision, in which inclusivity and accessibility were a clear and consistent priority for enabling children and young people with SEND to be more active.
Collaboration with young people and the community: In what ways does your initiative engage young people and community members closest to the problem? What role do they play in building the solution you deliver?
The community, particularly children, young people and families with SEND and additional needs, have been central to shaping this project from the outset. Their lived experience insights have been critical in identifying the barriers that prevent them from accessing existing play spaces and contributing to low levels of physical activity. Through multiple consultations, including the Council Play Survey, Project Play Newham Survey, Community Physical Activity and Leisure Resident Engagement, the Queens Market community engagement event, targeted inclusion focus groups with the Newham Parent and Carers Forum, and Youth Zone sessions, families have provided clear feedback on both the challenges they face and the solutions that would enable more active, inclusive play. Moving forward, these stakeholders and others, will continue to play a key role. They will form part of a project working group that will co develop and review playground designs, advise on the selection of accessible and sensory rich equipment, and help shape how the space is activated and used by the community. This collaborative approach ensures the Play Hub is not only designed for the community, but created with them—reflecting their priorities and supporting meaningful, inclusive access for all.
Potential for/Evidence of Impact: How do you imagine your initiative will make a difference in unlocking spaces for and access to physical activity and sport so far? If you have already implemented it, what difference have you made so far? What is the impact your initiative has had , and or what impact do you envision having in the future?
Potential Concrete Outputs; Creation of Newham’s first fully accessible Play Hub, A complete redevelopment of an existing playground into an inclusive, fully accessible space benefiting children of all ages and abilities. Installation of accessible sensory play equipment, supporting physical development, sensory regulation and increased activity levels. Improved family friendly infrastructure, On site toilets, seating, and café enabling families, particularly those with SEND children to stay longer and use the space more frequently. Co design with families and community stakeholders Children, parents, SEND carers, schools, and community groups will shape the design, equipment selection, and activation of the space. Activation plan for ongoing community use, family play sessions, SEND specific activity, and partnership work will ensure regular, meaningful usage. Long Term Impacts; Increased physical activity among children with SEND Reduced inequalities in access to outdoor play Improved mental health, wellbeing, and social connection Stronger community ownership and cohesion A scalable model for future investment means the Hub will serve as a demonstrator project informing future play upgrades as part of Newham’s long term Play Vision. Estimated reach could mean that up to 12,00 children with SEND may benefit over time through improved accessibility and reduced barriers to outdoor accessible play. As well as approximately 5000 children who live locally gaining direct access to improved play facilities. Speed of Impact As the site already has essential amenities (toilets, café), the redevelopment focuses primarily on equipment and design—allowing for a faster and more efficient transformation than creating a new facility from scratch.
Innovation: What is different about your initiative compared to other solutions that are already out there? How is your approach original and innovative?
Our initiative is innovative because it tackles the structural barriers that prevent children, particularly those with SEND and additional needs, from accessing meaningful outdoor play and physical activity. It does so through a new model of design, collaboration, and community driven delivery. Fully accessible play spaces are extremely rare; most playgrounds include one or two token pieces of equipment. We will completely reimagine this space by transforming an existing playground into Newham’s first fully accessible Play Hub. Instead of adding isolated pieces of inclusive equipment, we are fully redesigning a playground into a holistic, accessible space. This shifts the focus from small upgrades to completely reimagining the play experience towards increasing physical activity for all. Our approach, through genuine co-design with SEND families, places those most affected at the centre of the decision-making process. Families have informed us of barriers they face and will now propose solutions continuing to guide design, equipment choices, and activation. We aim to tackle inequality through structural change. The project addresses the root causes of exclusion (lack of accessible equipment, sensory spaces, calm zones, and appropriate facilities) while challenging norms about who public spaces are built for.
Viability and Scalability: How are you setting your initiative up for success, and what is your plan to ensure operational sustainability of your solution and its impact? What are your ideas for scaling your initiative to the next level?
Our initiative is set up for long term success through strong partnership working, existing site advantages, and a clear plan for sustainability. The project builds on existing engagement, established relationships, and infrastructure already in place, ensuring both immediate impact and long term viability. The redevelopment is based on design and transformation rather than building new facilities, this significantly speeds up delivery. The Council are also landowners therefore ongoing preservation of the space will be built into existing maintenance schedules and audits, this reduces long term operational barriers. Families, SEND carers, schools, community groups, and specialist partners will remain central to delivery through co design, review of playground designs, and guiding equipment selection. This shared ownership strengthens sustainability and ensures the space continues to reflect evolving community needs. This Play Hub is intentionally designed as a scalable demonstrator model for borough wide change, by providing a blueprint for future accessible play upgrades across the borough. Its combination of inclusive design, co production, and integrated activation makes it a repeatable model that can inform future investment elsewhere in the borough. Future growth and scaling of this model will involve developing new partnerships, expanding co design to additional neighbourhoods, additional cross sector partnerships with SEND networks and local community organisations and continued investment in inclusive infrastructure. The existing consultation base and established working relationships already lay strong foundations for this next phase.
Roles and Responsibilities: Describe how responsibilities are shared among your team or partners.
The success of this initiative relies on strong shared ownership. Each partner has a clearly defined role, ensuring the project is co designed, community driven, and operationally sustainable. The Council as landowner, will act as the lead delivery body, overseeing the full redevelopment of the playground. Coordinating design, procurement, installation, and integration with existing maintenance schedules ensuring long term upkeep. As well as managing stakeholder relationships, chairing project working groups, the Council will provide strategic leadership to ensure the project aligns with public health priorities, consultation results and reduces inequalities in access to play. Inclusion Matters Network & SEND Specialist Partners offer expert insight into existing barriers, potential solutions and shape priorities for inclusive play. They will inform on accessibility requirements, sensory design, and inclusive equipment, working closely with the Council to ensure the space meets the needs of children with SEND and provide support with activation and promotion of the Play Hub. Families, Parents/Carers, Schools, Youth Zones & Local Community will support ongoing consultation, future activation and promotion bringing lived experience, ensuring the Play Hub is developed with the community, not just for it. London Play (Voluntary Sector Partner) offer specialist knowledge of inclusive play and user led design. Providing insights from previous consultation, showing clear demand for better outdoor inclusive play and provide best practice examples from other boroughs. Friends of the Park will work with the Council supporting community access, champion the project and contribute to stewardship of the site ensuring the space remains welcoming and responsive to local needs.
Upcoming Milestones: Please provide an overview of the milestones that are required for your initiative to come to fruition/to grow.
Initiative Milestones essential for the delivery of Newham’s first fully accessible Play Hub: 1. Finalise Community Led Design • Formalise project working group, including families, SEND partners, community organisations, and London Play. • Review consultation findings and co develop detailed design concepts. • Agree on priority inclusive features, sensory zones, and accessibility requirements. 2. Technical Design & Procurement • Translate community led concepts into technical designs and specifications. • Conduct accessibility audits and safety checks. • Procure inclusive play equipment, surfacing, and sensory installations. • Align plans with existing infrastructure (toilets, café, seating) to ensure rapid, efficient delivery. 3. Site Preparation & Installation • Begin site works and remove existing infrastructure. • Installation of new inclusive equipment including wheelchair accessible structures, sensory play zones, and open movement areas. • Integrate family friendly infrastructure to support longer visits and greater use. 4. Testing, Safety Checks & Final Sign Off • Complete all safety inspections and accessibility testing. • Conduct walkthroughs with SEND partners and community representatives. • Final adjustments based on user feedback before opening. 5. Launch & Activation Programme • Co-design of promotional materials • Launch Event • Official opening of Newham’s first Accessible Play Hub. • Begin activation including family play sessions, SEND specific activity and community led events. • Promote awareness through partners, schools, Youth Zones, and local organisations. 6. Ongoing Monitoring & Continuous Improvement • Evaluate usage, impact on physical activity, and accessibility outcomes. • Continue monitoring through working group to refine activation and maintenance. • Use insights to inform scaling across additional neighbourhoods as part of Newham’s long term Play Vision.
Capacity-Building Participation and Support Funding: If you were to make it as a finalist, you will be required to participate in an 8-week capacity building programme. If funding/ cost is a barrier to your participation, we may be able to offer up to 10,000 GBP of grant money available to support you. Please break down below, if it is the case, what costs you would incur and you would need covered. (Please note that there are restrictions on how the grant money may be used; please refer to the T&Cs for further details.
Approximately £8,000 - Further targeted engagement and co-design events/workshops - Event infrastructure - Engagement materials - Consultancy fees
