After being stuck at home for a few days it was a relief to get out and try out a new play park with my boys. Just opened a few weeks ago (August 2019), we headed straight to the new Chipping Norton play park in the Cotswold Gate development. It’s right on the edge on Evans Way so has a lovely backdrop of fields.
It’s pretty perfect for little ones, with lots to keep them engaged. My almost 3 year old headed straight for the mini slide and climbing equipment before moving on to those bouncy spring things, I have no idea what they’re actually called.
There was the full range of swings too with a couple of baby swings, big kid swings and a bucket swing. I don’t know about you, but those bucket ones always leave me feeling dizzy. The roundabout was actually easy to push around unlike those ones that are flat to the ground and quickly fill with grit and require mega muscles to push. I liked the touches of colourful flooring, chimes and a variety of things to balance on. The bigger slide was fenced off but as the park has only been open a couple of weeks, I’m guessing this will be open soon too.
There are a few things for older kids but overall the design seems to be for younger ones. The spider rope climbing frame is always a popular one for my boys who scale just about anything whether it’s in a park or not and the highlight was the side by side zip wires, perfect for competitive boys who like to race each other.
One thing we could all enjoy together at the same time was the very cool rope swing and saw another family trying it out too.
The only thing missing for me was a bench to sit on, although I don’t get to do much sitting. There’s no shade either but trees have been planted at the side. The play park is fully fenced in too so no danger of kids escaping.
Overall I’d give this a thumbs up for little ones and a lovely new addition to Chipping Norton. If you’ve got an under 5, you might like to check out the Red Kite Days’ guide for things to do with preschoolers in Chipping Norton. It’s got all the baby & toddler groups and class in one handy guide.
