A new playground will be built at Ocean Grove Main Beach.
‘Kurrak Playground’ will be located next to The Dunes cafe and will celebrate Wadawurrung culture and the local environment.
In 2019 Barwon Coast commenced the planning for a new playground within the Ocean Grove Main Beach area.
An engagement process was conducted via community listening posts and an online survey to gauge sentiment on the need for a playground, its location and design.
A total of 196 individual submissions were made, with 93% of submissions in favour of the playground.
Key outcomes from the community engagement were a call for the playground to be accessible and to feature the local environment and the culture of the Traditional Owners of the region. Corrina Eccles, Wadawurrung Woman and Manager Cultural Education at Wadawurrung Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation was a key contributor to the design of the playground.
“‘Kurrak’ means ‘sand’ in Wadawurrung language, she said.
“Kurrak Playground will celebrate the many Wadawurrung seasons. As children play here they can follow the Wadawurrung people’s seasonal journey throughout Wadawurrung Country. We hope this inspires them to care for Country too.
“This was a great opportunity for us to work with Barwon Coast to help them integrate cultural knowledge into the playground design.
“We are currently working with Barwon Coast on a Cultural Heritage Management Plan and communications and community engagement are a key part of this process.”
Kurrak Playground, which is expecetd to cater to pre-school and lower primary school aged children, is anticipated to be completed and ready for play in early 2022. More information can be found at barwoncoast.com.au/playground
