As anyone who has worked on a planning committee can tell you, a lot of work goes into designing and organizing a community site. The committee has to plan something for everyone, and often a large portion of their time and budget goes into finding ways to keep the community’s children entertained. Communities often choose to include this entertainment in the form a
commercial playground. Play sets are tried and true methods that can keep children both busy and happy! These community playgrounds can provide children with hours of entertainment and social interaction while their parents enjoy other park amenities. But there is more to planning a good community site than fun and games. A good site will implement equipment that will keep children entertained and safe during play time! This can be as simple as seeking commercial playground equipment that already includes safety measures.
One of the most effective safety features that a
community playground can include is a safety surface. Can you remember the days of recess at your school? Do you remember running and jumping on the blacktop? Do you remember the skinned knees and bruises that followed? Today’s commercial playgrounds can easily help to eliminate these minor injuries, making play safer and more fun for children! Safety surfaces are designed to keep children from harsh impacts and abrasions if they fall from the play equipment. Playgrounds now offer these surfaces constructed from engineered wood, unitary bond rubber, loose-filled recycled rubber, and several other materials. Each is easy to maintain, requiring only light, occasional attention.
Another effective safety feature that can help prevent playtime injuries is age appropriate signage. Any parent, or even babysitter, can tell you that children do not always see the consequences and possible dangers of their actions. While they might imagine a creative new way to use the horizontal ladders, children do not always realize that this fun activity could lead to a terrible fall! A quality commercial playground will include signs that note parts of the systems that could be dangerous if used improperly. These signs help children to recognize that proper, safe way to employ the community playground, but also allow parents and caregivers to note these same areas from a distance.
A final, and likely most important, safety feature that is included in quality, safe commercial playgrounds is a customized maintenance kit. A simply way to ensure that any playground is safe is through regular maintenance. With use, any playground will start to degrade; loose features and missing protective coverings begin to increase the potential dangers in any play set. Someone should monitor the state of your community playground to ensure that all protective coverings are in place and that the screws and fasteners that hold ladders and bars in place have not come loose. Because not all play structures are the same, finding the right covering and fasteners can be difficult. By choosing a manufacturer or supplier that provides a custom kit, you can ensure that you can properly maintain and repair your community play set as needed. Kits should include basic tools and quick replacement pieces, along with a maintenance schedule and manual that is specific to your community’s system. Some kits even include touch up paint and graffiti remover!
While most children can keep themselves amused on any play equipment, communities should aim to design play areas for children that are both entertaining and safe. To decrease the likelihood of injuries on your community site, select only quality play equipment that is designed and distributed with safety in mind. A safe, quality commercial playground will feature safety surfaces to dampen falls, age appropriate signs to note potential dangers, and a custom maintenance kit to allow for easier up-keep.
