Thanks to one local resident, part of Splott’s longest street could soon be closed off to cars for two hours a month for children to play outside safely.
Following two successful Tree Street Parties held last year to celebrate a beautiful cherry tree and to bring residents together, Hannah Garcia applied to the Cardiff Council Street Play Programme to regularly close the east end of Railway Street.
So successful was Hannah’s Tree Party that the Railway Street cherry tree came fourth in the Woodland Trust’s 2019 Wales Tree of the Year Award. Find out more here
Now, the last section of Railway Street before Moorland Road / Beresford Rd bridge has made it to the top of the waiting list to become a ‘play street’.
The aim of a play street goes beyond a place for kids to play – it’s also about helping neighbours get to know each other, improving the the sense of local community, and helping kids feel some ownership of the place they live, hopefully meaning they’ll treat it well as they grow up.
Hannah would love to hear from anyone interested in volunteering to be a steward during some street play sessions or running play activities.
Also, if anyone is available to attend a meeting with Hannah on the 28th January to find out how to apply for a Temporary Street Play Order it would be much appreciated! The meeting is 6.30 – 8.30pm on Tuesday 28th January at Western Leisure Centre, Training room, Caerau Lane, Caerau, CF5 5HJ.
If you’d like to get involved or kept updated then please drop Hannah an email at hgarcia.cymru@gmail.com
You can see how play street work here: https://playingout.net/