Amazing things can happen when you pair passionate people who share a playful vision for their city and those who are dedicated to advocating for play.

Championing play is key for Palmerston North City Council’s Manumea Duri - as she puts it, “she’s that voice in the background saying what would play look like here?”. 

Manumea has been with the Council since January 2023, through Sport NZ’s Local Play Workforce Project, as their Local Play Advocate. Championing play from within the council, Manumea is ensuring that play remains central in council discussions.

Out-of-the-box ideas

The Council’s developed a play policy in 2021, working with local community play champion Heather Knox and key members from the Strategic Planning and Urban Planning teams. Manumea’s role has been instrumental in bringing the policy to life and kickstarting the many exciting play initiatives happening in the city. 

For instance, Manumea collaborated with ākonga from local schools to brainstorm ideas for a local footpath. The result was a 25-metre ‘racetrack’ complete with a speedometer for pedestrians and a painted play trail. Ākonga designed elements, such as a ‘walk the plank over shark-infested waters,’ were brought to life by local artist Mike Marsh.

These playful visual elements, funded by Waka Kotahi | NZ Transport Agency, not only spark children’s creativity but encourage more active transport to and from school. Tamariki love being dropped off a bit further away so they can race their friends or walk the imaginary plank.

Further play inspiration saw the council get creative after noticing blank walls outside city libraries. Thanks to the talented students at UCOL Polytechnic, the walls were given a boost with child-friendly digital animations. The projections not only support tamariki cognitive development but encourage creativity and active transport, as whānau make their way around the city centre to look at them.

Collaboration is key

Manumea and the council have been working closely with 
Whitney Le Comte, the Play Lead at Sport Manawatū,
to advocate for the importance of play across government
agencies.

Together, they created play packs for Kāinga Ora to give
families moving into new housing developments, as a way
of welcoming them to their new homes and neighbourhoods.

Sport Manawatū provided a selection of fun play equipment
and the council added playground maps and copies of their
‘Passport to Play Palmy’, which encourage people to get
outdoors and explore Palmerston North’s great places to play.

The way of the future

Manumea doesn’t believe saying ‘no’ to play is an option. There are many low-cost and no-cost ways to incorporate play into everyday life.

“Having a playful city creates a more vibrant and welcoming place to be – this aligns with the Council’s strategy of safe and thriving places and spaces for our community,” says Manumea.

The key to moving forward will be working with community to bring their ideas to life.

“If we collaborate closely with our community champions and local heroes who are passionate about doing cool things, we’ll let what’s cool shine even brighter.”