Paekākāriki School receives play trailer from MenzShed Kāpiti

Paekākāriki School playground group member Laken Flynn (left), Khoonsap Peirce, Cooper Hermes and Marcel Tautau. Photo / David Haxton

Some of the team at MenzShed Kāpiti have been hard at work on a treat for Paekākāriki School children — a little wooden train carriage.

School principal Julia Bevin said the idea came to them after a visit from Kāpiti Coast District Council, which brought its play trailer.

The council’s play trailer is taken around the district’s schools and gives students the chance to build stuff from it.

The children at Paekākāriki School wanted its own play trailer, so in September deputy principal Judith Smith got in touch with the MenzShed and started a playground group with four schoolboys — Laken Flynn, Khoonsap Peirce, Cooper Hermes, and Marcel Tautau — and put them in charge of designing the trailer.

Laken was especially interested in trains, so they decided they wanted a trailer shaped like the Paekākāriki Express — but that was a bit out of the MenzShed men’s capabilities, so they compromised on a train carriage.

Throughout the build, the playground group visited the MenzShed in Waikanae Beach to check on the progress and give their opinions.

“The children were great to work with and it was fun meeting with them,” MenzShed Kāpiti’s Ian Barbour said.

MenzShed Kāpiti and Paekakariki School's playground group combined to create a wooden train carriage play trailer. Photo / David Haxton

“The children came prepared, were polite and courteous beyond their years, and their input was well thought through.

“We’ve had a lot of fun working on it.”

The trailer is made of marine ply and has a plastic roof that was made and donated by Travis Mackay, a local builder and engineer.

After a couple of months the trailer was finished, and it was brought to Paekākāriki School and presented in front of a small group of children, including the playground group.

Next year the playground group boys will be involved in painting the trailer, and then they get to help decide what it will be used for.

But Bevin thought they would decide to fill the trailer with loose items such as old tyres and pieces of wood — things that didn’t have a specific use — rather than sports equipment.

“They’re very good at building out of found materials.”

She said the trailer would be replenished by the children as they found items.

“The children can get creative in their play.”