A new sports rebound wall on an all-weather surface means children at a primary school in Wisbech can practise a range of ball skills even when it’s too wet to use their grass playing field.

The wall at the West Walton Community Primary School was built using a £10,000 lottery award from Sport England under the organisation’s Playing Fields and Community Green Spaces programme and in partnership with the Norfolk LEA, Almond House and the Green Arrows.

Pupils at the school were involved in planning the £12,950 facility and helped decide issues such as where it should be built, how big it should be, what targets should be put on it and how best it could be used during school time and by the community.

Maggie Barwell, Project Manager for Community Learning at West Walton said playing sport helped the children learn in many different ways.

“Enjoyment is a major factor in learning,” she said. “Children learn best when they are in social groups and sport is very much about team work and co-operation.

“The rebound wall has made us all think about the sport curriculum we provide both inside and outside school and how we can use it as a springboard for children’s learning.”

Added one pupil: “We weren’t a very sporty school before it started, but now it is lovely and most pupils are involved in sport.”

West Walton Community Primary School Factfile

• The wall is open for community use and complements the existing provision of grass football and cricket pitches
• The facility has helped children at risk of committing crime to channel their energies in a positive way
• A skipping rope club uses the all-weather area every Wednesday
• Brazilian-style football training to the sound of Samba music has been enthusiastically received by the pupils and this has been linked with other curriculum subjects like music and art.