Bishopdale Park Playground

Bishopdale Park Playground is anchored by a fibreglass elephant slide that has watched over the corner of Harewood Road and Leacroft Street since the mid 1970s, chosen through a community design competition and now old enough to have inspired a children's picture book. Generations of Cantabrians know the whole park simply as Elephant Park.

Equipment

The elephant slide has a gentler pitch for younger children and sits alongside a flying fox, a see saw, a taller slide, swings with an infant seat, and a multi play structure with slide. A ninja style obstacle course with balance beams, climbing nets and monkey bars runs alongside, and on the Harewood Road side a skate bowl and a half court basketball setup cater to older riders and teens. The surface is bark and grass.

Access and Inclusion

The infant swing suits young families, and the main paths through the park are sealed and level, keeping flat sections accessible for wheelchairs and pushchairs. The eastern hedgerows give useful shelter when a northerly is blowing. On-street parking is available on Leacroft Street and Harewood Road.

Practical Info

Toilets are near the skate park area, with picnic tables, benches and drinking fountains spread around the perimeter. The skate park is currently being renewed. Bishopdale Library at Orauwhata and Bishopdale Village Mall are both a short walk away.