As the Wandiligong Primary School students returned for the start of their 2026 school year last week, they were greeted with a newly installed water playground, which was so popular, children of all grades were already playing with it before the first bell rang.

The idea for the water play area originally came about after teachers saw students such as Toby Cowden and his friends, filling buckets with water and watching the makeshift streams flow downhill.

"We put our [toys], some bricks and other things in the way to stop the water and see which way it went," Toby said.

"Maybe one day we can have a water wheel put in and use the water to make it spin and power something."

Principal Bob Clyne said the idea for this new water playground had been in the pipeline for approximately four years.

"It's incredible to finally see it come to fruition," he said.

"We had been putting money aside to upgrade our playground equipment, but a few years back we noticed the students spending months collecting water from the drinking taps in all sorts of containers and run it down the gutters, trying to change its direction, block it off and so on.

"So we thought: instead of upgrading equipment which was still in reasonable condition, why not build something which reflects how they actually play?"

At that point, the school engaged a specialist landscape designer to develop a concept plan.

The school ran brainstorming sessions with the students to see what they wanted, presented some ideas, gave feedback and ended up with a full design.

"We engaged a local contractor, Mark Rivette from Open Space Landscaping, who organised all the groundworks and materials and made the build extremely easy," Mr Clyne said.

"Apart from the concrete 'track' where the water runs, we incorporated the use of more natural elements like large, flat rocks around the border.

"We [also] ordered over 500 trees and plants and over several weeks the students and parent volunteers planted out the garden.

"In a year's time, the garden will look even better than it does now, with the plants to make up a sensory garden.

"When they first started using the water playground, we could already see why it's so fantastic.

"You could hear the students talking: 'You fill this and I'll lift this' and 'We need more people over here'.

"The cooperation and experimental skills developing as they try to move the water are already [evident]."

Stage one of the water playground is finished and Mr Clyne estimated stage two could be completed over the next six months.

"We have some other spaces to fill-in this year to complete stage two," he said.

"We've designed a space for the children to build cubbies and shelters with sticks and logs, as well as a 'stage' area: a blank [canvas] which they can make into anything they want.

"Any opportunity for them to be creative and work together is great to see.

"We want to see how the students use the space and what they want before we go ahead: we have the ideas, we just need to make sure they'll work."