Snug & Outdoor have been working with LDA Peterborough on designs for a Play Pathfinder in Rotherham. As part of the consultation process for Clifton Park, we went into two schools with writer Chris Meade and worked with pupils on poems - here are the results:

Poem made in a morning by Chris Meade and students at CLIFTON PERFORMING ARTS COLLEGEI walk to the window,
Feel the warm morning air hit my face
Hear the birds as they tweet
See the sun shining down on me,
And think:
I will arise and go to Clifton ParkTake the Playfinder PathTo the watery part where
We splish splash splosh
Spend your dosh
On ice cream chocolate and crisps too
In the minimarket near you
Scoober diveDo the jiveUnder waterCome aliveSwim with dolphinsSwim with meI walk past the graffiti wall
Only to recognize my best friend’s name
Painted small.
Chilling, chatting, Cliftonparking -In the Chill Zone, a big round space with comfy seats,We talk about.. well, what boys talk about:Football, cars, womenFresh air is like swimming
But fresh air is nothing like the thrill of rides
Rides:
Tickly stomach
Feeling the breeze
On a perfect skate park afternoon
You forget everything
Get that tense feeling –
Adrenaline rush
Sxreech
Boink
Duff
Shwoo
AAAAAAAHH
Snap crack
makes me want to do it again
girls make you try harder – your mind goes blank
As we race past Trouble CornerWhere feeling safeis knowing there is someone you can trust to help.Keeping it safe for ourselvesWe help out, keeping it clean and that.To feel safe in trouble corner
Not any gangs, drugs or drink
No dirty toilets stink
You keep yourselves to yourselves
You know there’s someone there
Laying back relaxing
many people reading
letting all drift away
people’s imaginations
thinking of the day
On Holiday in Clifton Parkby the side of the pathwatchingthe clouds and birds go pastI lay on the grass and make little faces
Out of the clouds
playing tiggy with my mates
racing round the playpath
the feeling of happiness spreadingflooding through my streamthe slow beating of my heartthe rhythm of musicrelaxing me more

***
Poem made in an afternoon by Chris Meade and students at EAST DENE PRIMARY SCHOOL
I run up the path
to Clifton Park
On my bike reeeet fast
Going
GRRRRRRRSmell that ice creamy hot doggy chocolaty smell
Of blue white silver invisible fresh fresh air
AHHHHHI will play with my brother, my friends,
On this wavy landform
On the swings
WHEEEEEWhich tickle my belly with their thrill
Make me sick with excitement
YUKKKKI will go to the beach to build
A car of sand, a lorry,
Get good and muddy,
Sit in the puddles making water bombs
SPLASHGo to the science park
Where there’s numbers and everything,
12341234And the haunted park
Where words
ECHO ECHO And ghost snakes
HISSSSSSSAt Halloween
When witches and tygers and pirates
Eat melted mud, twig chips, leaf pie
…AND SPROUTSOh, and coloured carrot
That make you go hyper and
All jumping about.
BOING BOINGAnd an evil bunny underneath the swamp
Let’s start to climb…
CLAMBER CLAMBER Up Clifton Park
Go slowly
Butterflyfeeler
Goosebumper
Icebreaker
Niki and Nikitha scarer
Getting the shakes
The ground gets
Smaller
Everything smaller
Climbing higher and higher
Feeling scared (not brave Murtaza)
Hold on tight…
GRRRRRRRAnd at night build a sand theatre
In Clifton Park,
Watch a crazy show
About a park forest with colourful hair
A gorilla and a lion and a bear
About all you can imagine
About everything you know
***