OXYGEN ACTIVEPLAY AND ITS FIVE NINJA WARRIOR UK PARKS LAUNCH NEW INITIATIVES TO GIVE LOCAL FAMILIES MORE ACCESS TO PLAY

Following their mission to energise the mind, body and soul of every kid on the planet, Oxygen Activeplay has announced partnerships to support families in making sure children have access to play and healthy meals.

Oxygen is working with local councils to offer free sessions as part of the Holiday and Food Programme and has also partnered with Coram Pacey to offer reduced-cost sessions for childminders.

During the Easter holidays, Oxygen Activeplay offered funded physical activity and hot meals to over 1500 children across 10 of its parks, in 11 different Local Authorities. The group operates 13 indoor activity parks under the Oxygen Activeplay, RedKangaroo and Boost brands, as well as their five owned Ninja Warrior UK venues.

After successfully applying for Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) funding, the teams at Oxygen Activeplay and their five Ninja Warrior UK venues began to offer free community support during the Easter break and will continue to do so for subsequent school holidays. Thanks to the programme, the venues can provide families, who are usually eligible for free school meals, with four hours of physical and enrichment activities, a nutritious hot meal, as well as signposting to additional local services.

Oxygen Romford and RedKanagaroo Coventry have been involved in the HAF programme for four years, since the pandemic, with Oxygen at MediaCity also participating from its opening last year.

Recognising increasing demand for these sessions and growing economic pressures on local communities, the company rolled out HAF-funded sessions to 10 of its venues and is working to be able to offer the programme across all parks.

Since the launch of the programme across their venues, attendees have praised the teams’ passion for the programme and their energetic engagement with kids.

Aiming to support even more families in time for the summer holidays, which bring heightened family pressures due to their longer duration, Oxygen Activeplay will offer the programme-funded sessions at 10 sites with the aim of delivering across more.

In order to support as many children as possible, the team also hosted additional sessions for children with Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND) as part of the HAF Programme at four of their venues.

The initiative is particularly important to the company and all of its team members, as it aligns with their mission to energise the mind, body and soul of every kid on the planet and ensure every child has access to physical activity and play opportunities.

Furthering their mission to bring physical activity and play opportunities to every child, Oxygen Activeplay and its five owned Ninja Warrior UK parks have also recently launched a partnership with Coram Pacey, which supports childminders and early years professionals with training, guidance, and safeguarding advice. They work to improve standards in childcare and champion the importance of high-quality early years education and play.

Through the partnership, all of Coram Pacey’s members, from child minders and nannies to early year workers, will benefit from exclusive discounts, including 25% off Toddler Play, Toddler Takeover, and additional child or adult tickets, as well as 10% off all food and drink.

Stephen Wilson, Chief Executive Officer of Oxygen Activeplay, said: “Each of our parks lies at the heart of its local community, and we are so proud that we can welcome families and children through our doors, whatever their means, across our portfolio of brands.

Our mission is to energise the mind, body and soul of every kid on the planet, and the Holiday Activities and Food Programme and our partnership with Coram PACEY are brilliant vehicles to help us make this possible.

We’re grateful to the local authorities who have supported our parks in the rollout to ensure that local children didn’t have to go without nutritious meals, physical activity, and enrichment activities during the Easter holidays. Meanwhile, our partnership with Coram PACEY means that we can support children from a young age and support their carers in giving them easier access to healthy, mentally-stimulating play.”

We’re working hard to make sure we can support even more families during the Summer holidays and beyond.”

To make the rollout of the HAF Programme across Oxygen Activeplay’s venues and their five Ninja Warrior UK sites possible, the teams have collaborated with the relevant local authorities and Active Partnerships. Active Essex is one of the organisations supporting the mission, dedicated to understanding the needs of local communities, identifying local partners who can meet these needs, and sharing learning on what works.

Stuart Tryhorn, Relationship Development Officer for South East Essex at Active Essex, said: “It has been great to see Oxygen as part of the HAF offer, providing a new and engaging experience for children who may not otherwise have the opportunity to access this type of activity without the programme.

Oxygen have had a very positive start as a new provider to Essex, overachieving against their allocated places and successfully engaging new and unique families. Once the full data set is available on attendees, it will be useful to review this in more detail. Early indications suggest the offer has been particularly effective in engaging secondary-aged children, with a high number of secondary schools represented in the bookings and on your waiting lists.”