Play bus
A play bus (or playbus or learning bus) is a bus used for providing a mobile facility for a variety of activities surrounding entertainment and education, usually for children of pre-school or school age.
Play buses are specially converted for their purpose, usually from second hand vehicles, although occasionally are purpose built by a bus manufacturer. Play buses can be of any size, from minibuses to double-deckers, and may be operated by charities, education authorities or as private businesses. The latter particularly market their services as a mobile party venue for children's birthday celebrations and the like.
Depending on usage and fittings, play buses may provide mobile playgrounds, gymnasiums, library services, or education centres as a mobile classroom.
In the United Kingdom, the National Playbus Association was a charity that provided support and advice to organisations, wishing to operate play buses. It was formed in 1969, and was supported by various government departments. It went into liquidation and folded on 31 December 2016.
Sources and credits
This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Play bus”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.
Images, from Wikimedia Commons:
- SPARKS Bristol's First Bus 'SPARKS 1' exhibit - September 2025.jpg by Captain Galaxy, CC BY 4.0
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