Today we all caught the train in to St Kilda to go to the adventure playground there. The City of Port Philip has a couple of adventure playgrounds designed as ‘big backyards’ for children in high density public housing.

Based on a similar concept in Denmark, the children were originally given the materials and tools and asked to build their own play space.  While no longer able to build the structures, the local children help out where they can creating murals, designing programs and having input into any future directions.

This thing is dead set like being sucked into a 1970’s episode of Sesame Street.  It’s organic, it’s visual, it’s all about being a kid.  The centerpiece is a castle, made of wood, with hidey spaces, maze like room to get lost, high climbs and inconvenient crawlspaces. There are climbing areas that are just a bit dangerous, a flying fox on a wire about ten metres long, and high enough of the ground to be fun, a half pipe that you go down on bits of hessian…

If you have kids and believe challenging and engaging them is more important than playstation and cotton wool, this place is for you! Photos after the jump…