Place Cadets is the Ōtautahi initiative where local tamariki from low-decile schools create outdoor play pieces for their communities. Founded by Dr Wendy Hoddinott, of Gather Landscape Architecture, the programme guides kids aged six to 11 as they research, design, prototype and build some super-imaginative equipment. Calling on parents and the wider community to lend their skills throughout, Place Cadets helps young people foster physical and social connections while leaving behind a playful legacy.

Here: Aside from some epic playground pieces, what are the kids getting out of it?

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Wendy Hoddinott: It’s doing a lot for their self-esteem and self-confidence. It shows them that if you follow and stick with a process, you’ll get where you want to go. Some of these kids didn’t even know design could be a future career, so introducing them to it at such a young age – at such a tangible level – allows them to understand that it is a real possibility.

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H: Who are you working with?

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WH: Typically, we’re in low-decile schools. Many of these children live in poverty, grow up with less opportunity, and face barriers and disadvantages others don’t, so it’s about supporting them and their schools to help enhance their outdoor environment in a small but important way. With many Māori and Pasifika students, we also try to tie their cultural narrative into the programme, weaving it into their school curriculum and values.

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H: Has it been a catalyst for broader community participation?

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WH: In some of these communities, there is a lot of suspicion about people coming in from the outside, so we focus on slowly building relationships. But as the project rolls on and the children head home with updates on what they’re doing each week, the excitement grows, and it’s infectious. At one school, we had almost every parent turn up for the final build day – some parents the school had never seen before.

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H: Any hopes for the future of Place Cadets?

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WH: I believe in the power of the small project, so I would love to see the principals integrate it into their school curriculum. On a larger scale, I’d like to examine how we can modify our council’s public-engagement processes so the community can be more meaningfully involved in designing their environments. Ultimately, we want to help people improve the quality of their outdoor environment because it changes how they perceive themselves and their community.

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Place Cadets

gatherfoundation.org.nz

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