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Charlie’s Paddock

Calf Pen toddler zone with Jarrah bush pole gate and chain mesh fencing at Charlie's Paddock playground

Custom treehouse cubby wide angle showing fireman's pole

Timber Ute tray detail showing handcrafted Jarrah jerry can and cabin canopy at Charlie's Paddock playground

Timber Ute front cab with white canopy and green slide from tray at Charlie's Paddock playground

Timber Ute bonnet and Golden Pipeline concrete tunnel with heritage artwork at Charlie's Paddock playground

Sand Pulley on Bush Pole with stainless steel chain bucket at Charlie's Paddock playground

Fresh Produce market stall with timber cash register — custom hospitality playground equipment at Charlie's Paddock

Bespoke Jarrah timber cash register with drawer and number keys on the Market Shop Front at Charlie's Paddock

Time to Cook kitchen wall with play pans at Charlie's Paddock playground — custom imaginative play by VRI

Carved Jarrah log cow with black-and-white Holstein markings on red surfacing at Charlie's Paddock playground

Naughts and Crosses panel rethemed with steak and sausage symbols at Charlie's Paddock playground

Heritage Trail Meets Beef Farm

The Charlie's Paddock playground at CY O'Connor Hotel in Piara Waters proves that the best hospitality playground equipment starts with a story worth telling. When Melaleuka Farm approached Van Ryt Industries to design, build and install a custom play space for their family-friendly dining venue, the brief was rich with local narrative — celebrating both the family's renowned butchery heritage and C.Y. O'Connor's historic Golden Pipeline engineering feat.

The result is a fully themed, multi-zone playground that transforms the venue's identity into a hands-on play experience — from a towering "Butcher Shop" treehouse to a Golden Pipeline tunnel and an enclosed toddler "Calf Pen" complete with carved Jarrah log calves.

The Challenge — Big Theme, Tight Space

Charlie's Paddock presented a design challenge familiar to many hospitality venues: how to deliver a feature-packed, all-ages play experience within a tight lineal footprint. The venue needed equipment suitable for a wide range of patrons — from toddlers through to older children — while maintaining clear sightlines from dining areas. Melaleuka Farm also required a separate enclosed toddler zone, adding another layer of spatial complexity.

The CY O'Connor Hotel was being rebuilt after fire damage at the time, so the playground also needed to be installed with minimal disruption to on-site trades completing the wider precinct construction.

The Solution — Custom Builds and Clever Theming

VRI's team worked closely with the client to develop a design that wove the farm-and-heritage narrative into every element. The centrepiece is a towering custom main play structure with hand-painted "Butcher Shop" signage — drawing on VRI's 154-MUN Mundy Forts platform system. This multi-level Jarrah structure features a 2.2 × 2.2 metre treehouse at 1.8 metres high with a shingled roof, a hex platform with slide, rock climbing wall, cargo net, rope ladder, rickety bridge with double rail, and a fireman's pole.

Alongside it sits the 505-UTE Timber Ute with a 0.9 metre slide and log scramble with three stepping stumps off the back. Two concrete tunnels with custom Golden Pipeline artwork pay tribute to C.Y. O'Connor's historic 530-kilometre pipeline — one featuring a hand-painted heritage trail map tracing the route from Perth through Northam, Merredin and Coolgardie to Kalgoorlie.

The themed experience extends through a 304-MAR Market Shop Front configured as a "Fresh Produce" stall with bespoke timber cash register, a custom kitchen based on VRI's 301-KTS Little Cooker Kitchen with wall-mounted play pans, a 613-SPP Sand Pulley on Bush Pole, and a custom 701-OXS Naughts and Crosses panel rethemed with steak and sausage symbols.

The Calf Pen — An Enclosed Toddler Zone

For younger visitors, VRI created a separate gated "Calf Pen" with 900 mm high Jarrah bush pole posts, diagonal brace and chain mesh fencing. Inside, a custom kitchen and sandpit anchor the play, while carved Jarrah log calves — based on VRI's 723-PIG Pig Log reimagined in cow form — add character and tactile play. 325-HAY Hay Bale seats provide informal seating for supervising parents, and a colorbond skillion roof lean-to provides shade.

Built Off-Site, Installed Ahead of Schedule

Every element was fabricated in VRI's O'Connor WA workshop before transport to site. Installation was completed across two to three days — ahead of schedule — with minimal interruption to on-site trades. All equipment was designed in accordance with AS 4685.

Charlie's Paddock joins The Bayswater Hotel, Gage Roads A-Shed Fremantle, Vasse Village and BIG4 Dunsborough in VRI's growing portfolio of custom hospitality playground equipment — purpose-built play spaces that give WA venues a genuine family-friendly point of difference.

Featured Equipment

154-MUN Mundy Forts — customised as main play structure with "Butcher Shop" signage, treehouse, hex platform and slide
505-UTE Timber Ute — with 0.9m slide and log scramble with 3 stepping stumps
304-MAR Market Shop Front — configured as "Fresh Produce" stall with custom timber cash register
301-KTS Little Cooker Kitchen — customised as "Time to Cook" kitchen with wall-mounted play pans
701-OXS Naughts and Crosses — rethemed with steak and sausage symbols
613-SPP Sand Pulley on Bush Pole
723-PIG Pig Log — customised as carved log calves with hand-painted Holstein markings
325-HAY Hay Bale seats × 2
630-SAD Sand Digger with Seat
Concrete Tunnels × 2 — with custom Golden Pipeline heritage trail artwork
Custom "Calf Pen" Toddler Zone — gated Jarrah bush pole fence with chain mesh
Colorbond Skillion Roof Lean-To
Salvaged Concrete Trough Sand Play Table
Custom Golden Pipeline Signage

Designing a playground for your hospitality venue, pub or family-friendly dining space? Contact Van Ryt Industries to discuss how custom theming can turn your play area into a destination.