Staff and pupils at a SEN school in south Farnham have nearly half a million reasons to be thankful as new playground has been officially opened.

There were cheers at Ridgeway School on Thursday (May 22) as the red ribbon was dropped to the amazing £475,000 outdoor facility.

The school’s playground has been transformed from a tired and dated concrete space into a world of colour with areas for outdoor teaching, informal activities and sport.

There’s also a quiet space, theatre stage and a wheelchair roundabout in the multi-coloured facility with room for all the school’s pupils to enjoy.

The school – which provides education and support for young people from ages 2 to 19 with severe or profound multiple learning difficulties – began a fundraising campaign last year to create a “safe, stimulating space” for its young people to enjoy.

The response was life-affirming with “too many people to mention” helping the school to reach its goal.

“Today is about saying thank you,” said headteacher Tom Byrne ahead of the grand opening on Thursday.

“Thank you to everyone who has pulled this playground together. It’s a real community project and it would not have come to fruition without a huge number of people.”

He added: “Playgrounds and play are a huge part of growing up. They’re something we take for granted.

“But what this project has really highlighted for our young people and their families is that the part of growing up we take for granted isn’t a reality for them.

“If we as a school, as a community, as Farnham, as a trust, and our families and young people can do a small part in widening our young people’s worlds then it’s already a huge achievement.”

The architect behind the innovative design was Paul Ginever of Grayshott firm Plan A UK Ltd while MEA Construction Consultants were the quantity surveyors.

Rooks Construction put in the hard graft with much of the work being done under the completed surface.

“It was a pretty full-on,” said Olly Rooks with site manager, Colin King, adding that around 100 cubic metres of concrete were used in the six-month project.

“The impact it has at the other end on the young people using it is the biggest satisfaction you get in the job,” said Mr Rooks.

“Seeing all these happy people using it was quite an amazing experience. You feel it.”

Funding came from a host of sources ranging from eight individual fundraisers to sizeable grants from the likes of Waverley Borough Council, the Mace Foundation, Foyles and Bernard Sunley.

One Ridgeway pupil started off the push by walking 12 laps around the school while a Three Peaks challenge and the equivalent of a Channel swim also swelled the coffers.

Firms like Haskins, Enterprise and The Crimea pub also helped out while Farnham Lions donated a hefty £20,000.

“It’s not about the money, it’s about helping and this has been the biggest project we’ve supported and definitely the one with the biggest impact,” said Lion Simon Moran-Smith.