Work on UK’s first soft play centre for disabled children gets under way

The state-of-the-art facility near Bristol will have 10 rooms including a sensory area and a gym

Construction work to build the UK’s first play centre and exercise facility for disabled children and young people is under way at a site near Bristol.

Local charity Gympanzees is behind the huge project to transform the former services station next to the M48 Severn Bridge.

Building work on the project, which is expected to complete later this year, will see the vast 2,350 sq metre ground floor converted into 10 rooms for play.

These will include a gym; light and dark sensory rooms; an active sensory space and trampoline room; a café; music room; and soft play.

The new centre is expected to receive more than 200,000 visitors a year once it is open to the public. Until now, the charity has hosted a series of pop-up events attracting thousands of families from around the country.

Stephanie Wheen, founder and chief executive of Gympanzees said: “We can’t thank our funders, corporate partners, and the public enough for their support.

“We’ve had fantastic feedback on our services so far, but families deserve more than temporary pop-up events and remote support,”

Bristol construction company Oakland is partnering with the charity on the project. Tom Lee-Fox, the company’s managing director, said: “It’s a real privilege to have been instructed on this project. It plays to our strengths as a regional contractor with experience across health, education and care settings.

“We do not see this as just another construction project, but an opportunity to be part of Gympanzees’ journey and to make a difference to the lives of the incredible people who both work for and are supported by Gympanzees – we cannot wait to get started.”

In April, Gympanzees secured nearly £1m from the National Lottery for the scheme. The cash raised by the organisation, including the money from the lottery’s community fund, now stands at £8m.

“At previous sensory play and exercise sessions that we’ve held, we’ve witnessed a three-year-old laugh for the very first time and a teenager pull herself up to stand independently,” added Ms Wheen. “With this centre, we can create hundreds more moments like these.”