Playground equipment-Planning an Inclusive Playground
Playground equipment-Planning an Inclusive Playground
Too often when building an inclusive playground, the first thing that the planning group does is leaf through a variety of playground manufacturers’ catalogs. They start yelling out the cool things they have found. The entire planning of the playground is then based on interesting playground equipment.
I contend that selecting equipment should be one of the last things you do. First you want to form a planning group that represents the community that will use the playground. Include parents (some of whom have children with disabilities, some of whom do not), parks and rec staff (including maintenance staff), neighbors who live near the park, a landscape architect, and experts in children with varying disabilities.
When forming the committee, it is important to have people who are knowledgeable in a variety of different disabilities. What often happens with parents, I have been known to do it myself, is that they want to build the perfect playground for their child and don’t automatically think through the needs of others.
One of the first tasks of the planning committee should be to write a mission statement and maybe a values statement. The process of this enables all of the members of the committee to understand what is important to everyone else. The committee can also go back and refer to the mission whenever they are stuck in the decision making process.
Now that there is a committee and a mission, the group needs to determine their budget and begin to identify a site. The group should also find someone to build them a website. I have found that the playgrounds that are the most successful in raising funds, friends, community buy-in, and volunteers are those with a good website. The website should show the community what the mission is, why it is important, and that the group will be good stewards of their money.
Using a good checklist, the committee should start discussing what components of the playground are the most important to them. The components are not necessarily equipment—we still have a long way to go before we select equipment.
Some of the questions the group might want to discuss are:
1. Should we put in a fence?
2. How do we want to do wayfinding?
3. How important is the entrance and an orientation path?
4. How important is it for children to experience height?
5. What age range do we want to serve?
6. What type of play to we want to provide?
Next the committee should start exploring the surfacing options. Surfacing can be the most expensive aspect of your playground. You do want to leave it for the end. Members of the community should be prepared to ask the different surfacing salespeople a list of questions about safety, accessibility, warranty, cost, and installation. Ask to go see playgrounds in your area that use this company’s product. Visit and check out how it is handling the wear and tear. Ask the owner of the playground how much maintenance it takes and whether they have had any problems.
It now almost time to start selecting equipment, but it still should not be an exercise of everyone yelling out for their favorite pieces. Take the list of the types of play the group wants to provide and prioritize them. Then systematically start selecting pieces that fulfill each need. Make sure, within each of the types of play, you are offering challenge to a wide range of children. Too often, inclusive playgrounds do not offer enough challenge for children without mobility issues. Once you have your dream list of equipment, compare that to your budget. Using your prioritization list, start narrowing down your list until you are in the right price range. Remember to keep the challenge in and to ensure that the “Coolest Thing” in the playground is accessible to all.
The Design Guide includes sections on:
1. International standards and laws
2. Planning and Preparation
3. Layout
4. Access
5. Selecting Equipment
6. Play Richness
7. Support Features
8. Other resources
9. Surfacing
Each section is divided into several categories. Each category outlines “intents” and “strategies.”
1. Intents = Goals
2. Strategies = Implementation tactics
The Intents create a composite picture of an inclusive play space. The identified strategies are suggestions on how to meet each intent.
Too often when building an inclusive playground, the first thing that the planning group does is leaf through a variety of playground manufacturers’ catalogs. They start yelling out the cool things they have found. The entire planning of the playground is then based on interesting playground equipment.
I contend that selecting equipment should be one of the last things you do. First you want to form a planning group that represents the community that will use the playground. Include parents (some of whom have children with disabilities, some of whom do not), parks and rec staff (including maintenance staff), neighbors who live near the park, a landscape architect, and experts in children with varying disabilities.
When forming the committee, it is important to have people who are knowledgeable in a variety of different disabilities. What often happens with parents, I have been known to do it myself, is that they want to build the perfect playground for their child and don’t automatically think through the needs of others.
One of the first tasks of the planning committee should be to write a mission statement and maybe a values statement. The process of this enables all of the members of the committee to understand what is important to everyone else. The committee can also go back and refer to the mission whenever they are stuck in the decision making process.
Now that there is a committee and a mission, the group needs to determine their budget and begin to identify a site. The group should also find someone to build them a website. I have found that the playgrounds that are the most successful in raising funds, friends, community buy-in, and volunteers are those with a good website. The website should show the community what the mission is, why it is important, and that the group will be good stewards of their money.
Using a good checklist, the committee should start discussing what components of the playground are the most important to them. The components are not necessarily equipment—we still have a long way to go before we select equipment.
Some of the questions the group might want to discuss are:
1. Should we put in a fence?
2. How do we want to do wayfinding?
3. How important is the entrance and an orientation path?
4. How important is it for children to experience height?
5. What age range do we want to serve?
6. What type of play to we want to provide?
Next the committee should start exploring the surfacing options. Surfacing can be the most expensive aspect of your playground. You do want to leave it for the end. Members of the community should be prepared to ask the different surfacing salespeople a list of questions about safety, accessibility, warranty, cost, and installation. Ask to go see playgrounds in your area that use this company’s product. Visit and check out how it is handling the wear and tear. Ask the owner of the playground how much maintenance it takes and whether they have had any problems.
It now almost time to start selecting equipment, but it still should not be an exercise of everyone yelling out for their favorite pieces. Take the list of the types of play the group wants to provide and prioritize them. Then systematically start selecting pieces that fulfill each need. Make sure, within each of the types of play, you are offering challenge to a wide range of children. Too often, inclusive playgrounds do not offer enough challenge for children without mobility issues. Once you have your dream list of equipment, compare that to your budget. Using your prioritization list, start narrowing down your list until you are in the right price range. Remember to keep the challenge in and to ensure that the “Coolest Thing” in the playground is accessible to all.
The Design Guide includes sections on:
1. International standards and laws
2. Planning and Preparation
3. Layout
4. Access
5. Selecting Equipment
6. Play Richness
7. Support Features
8. Other resources
9. Surfacing
Each section is divided into several categories. Each category outlines “intents” and “strategies.”
1. Intents = Goals
2. Strategies = Implementation tactics
The Intents create a composite picture of an inclusive play space. The identified strategies are suggestions on how to meet each intent.
评论
发表评论