Queen Elizabeth reportedly plans to revamp the play area at her Sandringham Estate with a look to reflect a lot of famous landmarks and incorporate a more family-friendly site. The local council received the plans for the development, which will still need the officials' approval.
According to Daily Mirror, the new playground will replace the existing play area and will have similar features as the nature garden Kate Middleton had for her Chelsea garden showcase. The site will also have a curling slide, ramps for accessibility and a 26-feet Victorian tower similar to the one found in nearby Appleton.
A separate multi-level play area, designed after medieval ruins of St Mary Magdalene church, is also part of the proposal. Another play structure, based on the Nest summerhouse of Queen Alexandra, will be incorporated into the design along with a new play area for toddlers.
The features have been designed to cater to all range of families and kids. While Sandringham is Queen Elizabeth's private land, it has a restaurant, a shop, a visitor center and the parks that receive at least 500,000 visitors every year.
A spokesperson from Buckingham Palace confirmed the design submissions to the planning council. While parents in the local area are happy with the proposal, one regular visitor to the estate said that the Queen's estate will look like a theme park.
Queen Elizabeth and the royal family usually stay at Sandringham for the Christmas holidays. The 20,000-acre land houses Anmer Hall, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's country estate. It's also where Prince Philip has his retirement home, Wood Farm.
The Park House, now a hotel, is also found in the estate. It's where Princess Diana was born when her father used to rent the property from the royal family.
Queen Elizabeth was recently at Sandringham to spend two weeks at Prince Philip's Wood Farm. The monarch made an unexpected decision to leave Balmoral, Scotland for Sandringham earlier than planned because of the rising COVID-19 cases in the highlands.
Sources said that it had been tedious both for the royal pair and their staff to remain in Balmoral. With the necessary restrictions in place, everyone apparently got bored so the Queen decided it was time for a "change in scenery."
Wood Farm is smaller than any of the Queen's houses and it's also the most comfortable house for Prince Philip. The Duke of Edinburgh decided to stay in his farming estate when Queen Elizabeth drove back in the early October for Windsor Castle, the first home she stayed in at the height of the lockdown.
It is understood that Queen Elizabeth will stay in Windsor for the rest of 2020 and will only travel to Buckingham Palace for carefully chosen essential face-to-face engagements. She could also go back to Sandringham or Wood Farm at any time.
