St Christopher's Church of England Primary School, Bury St Edmunds
St Christopher’s CE Primary School is a semi-rural school with a long-standing partnership with Marion at Phoenix Play. On 1st September 2025, the school took over the running of their onsite preschool, which had previously been managed externally. They inherited a blank canvas in terms of outdoor play provision so the leadership team were determined to create an inspirational space where the children could thrive. Their key focus included an all-weather outdoor area where preschool children could play, learn, and spend time at the start and end of the day with their parents; plus a dedicated area for gross motor play, helping children to explore, take risks, and develop important physical skills.
Working closely with Craig Smith, Deputy Headteacher, we developed a design that achieved both objectives:
- A large canopy, providing year-round shelter so that children could enjoy fresh-air learning, story time, and play whatever the weather. This space also gives parents a comfortable, covered area at drop-off and collection times.
- The addition of The Baret Great Explorer Set, offering a versatile way for children to develop gross motor skills and spatial awareness. With their low critical fall height, the blocks can be used safely on both soft surfacing and block paving, giving the school maximum flexibility.
The Baret Great Explorer Blocks are a fantastic asset to any school playground as they encourage a range of valuable skills:
- Jumping and landing – building confidence, spatial awareness, and risk-taking
- Balancing on the ‘hill’ – strengthening the vestibular sense, core muscles, and overall balance
- Climbing the ramp – sparking scientific enquiry into gravity, force, and motion
The Impact
The new outdoor spaces have transformed the preschool garden, providing both practical solutions and exciting opportunities for play and learning. The canopy creates a bright, welcoming hub for outdoor activity, while the Great Explorer Blocks quickly became a favourite with children and parents alike.
At the preschool’s open afternoon, prospective families were able to experience the new space for the first time, with the Great Explorer Blocks proving such a success that the school is already planning to extend the set into their Reception area.
A Word from the School
Craig Smith, Deputy Headteacher, shared his experience:
“We turned to Marion and Phoenix Play to support us in developing two defined spaces within our brand new preschool garden. We knew we wanted to provide an outdoor space that could be used in all weathers and the canopy that Marion suggested and designed was perfect. When we compared it to quotes received from other companies, we could quickly see that the product that Phoenix Play could provide was not only much larger than the others, but it was also constructed using vastly better materials too. The second space we hoped for was somewhere where children could develop and explore gross-motor movements. We knew that this type of play was vitally important within our provision and so we wanted to invest in something that could be versatile and have real impact. Marion suggested that the 'Explorer Blocks' may be the answer and we just loved how they looked and the many opportunities they would provide for our pupils.
We are so pleased that we chose Phoenix Play to enhance our outdoor provision. From start to finish they have gone above and beyond to ensure that we were delighted with the outcome. I remember in our first visit with Marion, I'd just seen two alternative companies to Phoenix and had felt really disappointed with the suggestions that had been made. Marion listened carefully to our vision and made suggestions that aligned to it... and that were in budget too! Phoenix Play kept in touch throughout the process and booked us in to complete the work around our very tight schedule.
We would absolutely recommend Phoenix Play to anybody considering making changes or enhancements to their outside provision. The products are beautifully made, carefully installed, and their after-care is second-to-none.”
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