A SCHOOL for children with special needs is appealing for outdoor play equipment to help youngsters learn.

The playground at Mabel Prichard Special School on Oxford’s Blackbird Leys estate was extended over the summer – but there is no money left to provide new equipment.

As a result, staff are appealing for donations of old Wendy houses, outdoor play kitchens, and plastic garden tables, so children can play, draw and paint outside.

They have also asked for dressing-up clothes, musical instruments, bikes and pedal cars.

The school specialises in children with special needs, including physical disabilities and learning difficulties. Many of the children have forms of autism.

The appeal is on behalf of 20 pupils, aged between one and seven, in the school’s nursery and foundation classes.

Nursery leader Anna Panter said: “We’ve got a climbing frame and a couple of see-saws, but we are really trying to improve our creative area. Unfortunately, we haven’t got funding to provide equipment.

“Maybe some people have older children who no longer need their outdoor play equipment.

“We want equipment we can leave outside as we don’t have anywhere to store it.

“I would like anyone who has anything to contact me, and I will then be able to tell them whether it would be suitable.”

She added: “The children like going outside and it’s brilliant for them. If we do one-on-one play, it’s a way of communicating with the children, as we have some children with no speech.

“Play is important because it helps them learn and it motivates them. They really enjoy it.”

The school, in Cuddesdon Way, opened in 1954 and was named after Mabel Prichard OBE for her outstanding commitment to public health and welfare in Oxford.

Mrs Panter added: “Play is part of the curriculum but most of the playground is concrete and looks a bit bare.

“The toys need to be quite robust because, sometimes, the youngsters don’t know their own strength. They play hard.”

Judith Crump teaches five- to seven-year-olds at the school.

She said: “We’ve got little bits of everything, but not enough. One of our aims is to have a sandpit.

“When the children are young they learn through play, it teaches them to share and co-operate so they can work towards playing games together.”

If you are willing to donate, call Mrs Panter on 01865 775218.