Group that wants to convert Hong Kong playgrounds into fun zones a beneficiary of this year’s Operation Santa Claus
- Playright Children’s Play Association wants to make city parks more accessible to children with special needs, and entertaining for adults
- It is one of 19 beneficiaries of this year’s Operation Santa Claus, a fundraising drive organised by the South China Morning Post and RTHK
Kathy Wong Kin-ho hid from the sun inside one of the large, upcycled water pipes in a park in Western District. Around her, children were crawling through them as if they were in a tunnel, sliding down one that had been cut in half, and a young boy could be seen jumping from atop several stacked together. His mother kept an eye as she lounged in the shade.
Wong watched proudly as people of all ages seemed to be enjoying themselves at WE Park, located on Fung Mat Road Waterfront Open Space in Sai Ying Pun, and designed by staff at the Playright Children’s Play Association in collaboration with the Central and Western District Office.
“This is what we wanted,” she said. “A unique play space that’s fun for both children and adults.”
Wong is the executive director of Playright, a charity founded in 1987 that aims to promote and protect a child’s right to play and engage in recreational activities appropriate to his or her age.
“We were inspired by several things. First, there is a deep sewage tunnel that runs from around here all the way to Stonecutters Island,” Wong said. “So, we wanted to use some of this region’s characteristics in the design of the park.”
