A new multi-sports pitch for children with autism has gone down a storm at its official opening at an Essex special school.
The MUGA at Doucecroft School in Colchester was opened last month after supporters raised the £60,000 target to install the pitch.
Doucecroft School is a specialist co-educational school for children and young people with autism and additional complex needs, aged 3-19 years. Doucecroft has successfully nurtured students with wide-ranging strengths and needs and enabled them to grow in independence and self-esteem since its founding nearly 40 years ago.
The school is part of Autism Anglia, a charity that provides a range of services across East Anglia to enable children, young people and adults with autism to live as independently as possible and experience choice and inclusion in society.
Doucecroft appointed Sport safe, an international provider of sports equipment installation, service and maintenance whose head office is in Colchester, to work with the management team to plan, design and deliver a bespoke MUGA child enjoy all year round.
Sportsafe turned to Suffolk contractor MTA Leisure for the fencing, who specified steel fencing manufacturer Zaun’s 3m-high Duo8 Super Rebound twin horizontal wire panels, highly durable, low maintenance, ‘graffiti proof and offer great rebound properties similar to a wall.
The new MUGA was put through its paces at the opening ceremony in several football matches between Doucecroft and another SEN partner school nearby.
Donors included: The PJK Charitable Trust; The Anglian Community Trust; Colchester Catalyst Charity, The Peter Harrison Trust, the Pantaloon Theatre Company, Reedmans Florists, collection money from Waterwise at Poplar Nurseries and Lisa Rivers.
