CJP Parent Association/Parks Foundation Calgary

Captain John Palliser Playground Project

Association (CJP PA) completed a three year project to replace the ageing and inaccessible playground and garden at Captain John Palliser School (CJP). The CJP PA was responsible for project fundraising, coordinating the design and installation of the playground and the revitalization of the adjacent Discovery Garden.

The Allardyce Bower Foundation’s financial support of Captain John Palliser School’s Inclusive and Naturalized Playground Project was essential to the success of our project, allowing us to meet each of our four project goals:

• Creation of a playspace to serve the needs of CJP students and the community at large.
• Creation of a naturalized outdoor learning and playspace focussed on the recognition of Indigenous Peoples and their teachings.
• Creation of an inclusive environment, sensitive to differing physical and neurological needs.
• In all activities, respecting Canada’s cultural diversity – both historical and modern.

The Allardyce Bower Foundation funded the materials and installation of the playground’s rubber surface. This allows all users, regardless of physical abilities, to navigate the playground space safely and without barriers in comparison to standard gravel surfacing. The cost of the rubber surfacing was a significant portion of the project as a whole, approximately one-third. Prioritizing this feature in the playground design was essential to meeting our inclusive and accessible goals.

Adjacent to our playground is a naturalized area that further expands the opportunity for students and community members to play, learn, observe and reflect. Funding from the Allardyce Bower Foundation allowed us to improve this space by leveraging Indigenous learnings within the school that focus on learning from the land. The Discovery Garden now includes an outdoor classroom, raised garden beds and native plant species. Classes are often seen using the space year-round, to enhance their learning through the land. It is a welcoming space for students and community members to explore and play.

The commitment from the Allardyce Bower Foundation gave us access to matching grants and established the project’s viability to other donors and supporters. This supported us in raising over $500,000 in financial and in-kind donations to build the full scope of our project.

Currently, CJP is the site of the only accessible playgrounds of any of the seven local area elementary schools and while it is often fully utilized by students during lunch and recess breaks it also draws many community members outside of school hours. We’re confident that by making the playground accessible and inclusive and by reviving the naturalized area, we have created an invaluable, all-season community space for many years to come. We are extremely grateful to the Allardyce Bower Foundation for supporting our vision and making it a reality.