Families at RAF Shawbury enjoyed a range of special activities on 13 September 2011 to celebrate the opening of new Multi use games area, a new state-of-the-art play area for young people living on or around the RAF station.
The Multi use games area is one of many Airplay parks funded as part of the RAF Benevolent Fund’s £24 million Airplay programme for children and young people, which has also funded trained Airplay youth workers to support RAF staff at the station. The park has been built through a funding partnership with the RAF Benevolent Fund, RAF Shawbury and Shropshire County Council.
The new park was opened by Martin Henshaw, Regional Director for the RAF Benevolent Fund, with RAF Shawbury Station Commander, Group Captain Bunny James.
Martin said: “RAF children face many unique challenges. Parents can deploy overseas at short notice, sometimes to war zones. Families move around the country as operations demand, often to stations in isolated, rural locations where children must make new friends and start at new schools. It is not always easy. That’s why the RAF Benevolent Fund has developed the Airplay programme.
At RAF Shawbury we are delivering the full spectrum of Airplay support, having already built a new Airplay childcare centre as well as these splendid new games areas and funding trained youth workers to support the community team. In this way we can help the RAF provide some continuity of support and take some of the pressure off busy parents at home and on the front line.”
Joining Station personnel and families at the opening were Councillors from Shropshire County Council, members of the local community and village and members of the Shrewsbury Town FC Youth Academy. Personnel from the RAF Shawbury Physical Education Flight organised games on the new park with children from the Station and Village accompanied by the Youth Academy players.
The event was organised by the Station Community Development Worker, Gail Moore, who said: “The Station is proud to have been able to open the park through an excellent working relationship with the RAF Benevolent Fund and Shropshire Council. The Station already supplements its Community Outreach team with Airplay Youth Workers, funded by the Benevolent fund. This relationship assures Shawbury families as well as the local community benefit from some excellent facilities.”
Group Captain James said: “This marks a further step change in the integration, outreach and community support that RAF Shawbury is well known for. The support by the RAF Benevolent Fund to help us provide massively better facilities for a wide range of youth, under the AIRPLAY programme, is warmly welcomed in and across the wider community at Shawbury and surrounds. Rural areas often suffer for decent facilities and activities, and this MUGA adds another string to our bow with which to provide interesting, exciting and tangible support to the youth in our communities.”