18 June 2026
Vistry and Homes England open new play park at Brewery Place in Blandford St Mary, Dorset
Vistry, the UK’s leading provider of mixed-tenure homes, and Homes England have officially re-opened a new play park at the Brewery Place development in Blandford St Mary, Dorset following a redesign informed by resident feedback and a Building for Healthy Life review, the nationally recognised framework for creating healthier, more sustainable neighbourhoods.
The original play park was delivered alongside the new homes at Brewery Place. However, a post-completion Building for Healthy Life assessment identified opportunities to enhance the space so that it better reflected the high-quality design and placemaking ambitions achieved across the wider development, which scored highly for character, front gardens and wayfinding.
Feedback from residents also highlighted that the original play area lacked accessibility and did not fully complement the character of the growing community. In response, Vistry and Homes England jointly funded a replacement nature-inspired play area designed to create a more inclusive and engaging space for local families.
The new play park provides a dedicated outdoor space for local children and families, to encourage active and nature-led play within a safe, landscaped setting. It features timber-based equipment including climbing structures, balancing logs, stepping elements, jumping discs and a nest swing. The design has been carefully integrated into the riverside environment to encourage exploration, movement and free play in a natural setting, while a new path also improves accessibility for buggies and families.
This project reflects both organisations’ commitment to the Building for Healthy Life framework for their joint developments. The latest update places even greater emphasis on healthy streets, active travel, biodiversity, green infrastructure, climate resilience and long-term wellbeing, with high-quality play spaces recognised as a key component of successful communities.
The park forms part of Brewery Place, a new and vibrant community comprising a mix of one- and two-bedroom apartments alongside three-bedroom houses. Designed with strong connectivity in mind, the development features walkable streets and high-quality open spaces that provide residents with welcoming areas for relaxation and leisure. The scheme has also been recognised within the latest Building for a Healthy Life 2026 update, where it is showcased as an example of best practice in placemaking.
Phil McHugh, Divisional Chair at Vistry, said: “Building for Healthy Life provides a great design health check at the start, during and the end of building new communities. Following the post-occupancy review at Brewery Place, we recognised an opportunity to improve the play provision and create a space that better reflected the quality and character of the wider development.
"This new play area brings an important community asset into the heart of Brewery Place. Set within a natural riverside environment, it gives children the opportunity to play, explore and be active outdoors, while helping to strengthen connections between the development and the surrounding village."
Amy Burbidge, Head of Design and Master Development at Homes England, commented: “Homes England uses ‘Building for a Healthy Life’ as a framework to help us design sustainable places, and to assess quality of proposals, and finally, to check on completed schemes. We are pleased that we have been able to work together with Vistry to ensure that the play park matches the high quality of the wider scheme, offering high quality homes and spaces for people to enjoy."