Happy Playpark

During the closing stages of 2020 I am proud to say that we at Step2 Design had the opportunity to work on a truly rewarding project. Working with ‘Red Monkey Play’ in collaboration with McDonald’s we helped to design the first playpark for the Ronald McDonald charity house in Oxford. The beauty of this play park was that all the elements were made from recycled happy meal toys. 

A drive by McDonald’s to remove all plastic toys from their happy meals and replace them with sustainable paper-based gifts, books and soft toys has helped inspire this great new concept. This playpark is the first of 15 that will be opening in the Ronald McDonald charity houses all to be constructed from these recycled toys. 

All Photos © Matt Alexander/PA Wire

In total, over 1 million toys will be recycled to create these play parks. Interestingly enough, this project was kick started by 2 young sisters last year who gathered more than 400,000 signatures against the use of plastic toys in children meals.

Not only are the play parks sustainable, they have been specifically designed to help promote both physical and cognitive development, something that is especially important in light of the current world situation.

The mental and physical wellbeing of these children is something that should be constantly considered, and we were honoured to be part or this rewarding project that not only provides children with a fun outdoor space to play in, but is also environmentally conscious by recycling the plastic toys from the McDonald’s happy meals.

We would like to thank ‘Red Monkey Play’ for the opportunity to work on such a project and look forward to the future development of the remaining parks. Have a look at the official posts from McDonalds here:

https://twitter.com/McDonaldsUK/status/1339635113890615296

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-oxfordshire-55362296