CELEBRATING 20 YEARS AT THE YARD

Submitted by Editor on Fri, 01/11/2013 - 08:56

It’s been 20 years since HRH Princess Anne first cut the ribbon on the new Scotland Yard Adventure Centre in Canonmills, writes Emma Bone.

At the time The Yard was run by a small committed team of part time play workers and volunteers who had been working out of a portacabin in King George V Park. So having a permanent building, which is still home to The Yard today, was a major step forward for disability services.

The fundraising campaign to open the permanent building was led by Andy Irvine, Archie Macpherson and Sheena MacDonald. Their goal was to raise in the region of £350,000 to erect a purpose built indoor play space on the site. In 1993 following a major injection of funding from Children in Need the current building was erected and opened its doors.

Since then The Yard has never looked back, at times stumbling through hardship but always striving to achieve the best for the children and young people who need it most. In 1996 it received the Right to Play Award from the International Play Association and in 2004 the Nancy Ovens Award for services to play. Over the years there have been visits from many well-known faces including actor Richard Briars and musician Evelyn Glennie who opened The Yard’s first music and sound garden in 1998.

Today The Yard is firmly established in the heart of the community and is looking forward to expanding its service across Scotland. It provides a play service 6 days a week, 50 weeks of the year to over 1,500 children and families from all over Scotland. It also offers training courses, youth clubs and play for children and young people aged from 3 to 25 years.

Its ability to look forward with confidence is mostly thanks to its massive refurbishment last year. As part of BBC Children in Need, Nick Knowles and the team from DIY SOS transformed The Yard in just 9 days with the help of over 300 tradespeople from all over Edinburgh and the Lothians. The Centre had been relatively untouched for 20 years and in just over a week they put in new outdoor play structures, built a new kitchen, a state of the art sensory room and completely regenerated the centre.

But they didn’t just give it a new lease of life, what they did was show everyone how much they cared and helped a much loved and needed centre, that had been living hand to mouth for so many years, continue to provide a service for disabled children and young people who need a place to play.

For more information, visit The Yard's website here.