Designing Greener Playgrounds
Making greener choices
“As a council we’ve put the climate and nature and emergency at the heart of everything we do. So when we were looking at options we wanted to make sure that any supplier could meet those criteria and provide greener benefits and the use of recycled materials is fantastic. We’ve done a lot on the use of single use plastic trying to reduce the use and the importance of the circular economy and reusing materials is really important.”
Councillor Catherine Braun, Deputy Leader of Stroud District Council, Green Councillor representing the Wooton-under-Edge Ward
Overview
Taking responsibility
Playgrounds are more than just a place for children to play, learn and develop their skills. Behind the swings and slides lies the reality that playgrounds have a deep environmental footprint. From the moment the raw materials are extracted to the time when the play equipment needs to be disposed of, each phase of a playground’s life cycle poses a potential challenge to our environment.
At KOMPAN, we have redesigned play from the ground up. Our culture is centered on taking responsibility for reducing our carbon emissions, and we believe this approach will not only lower the carbon impact of every project we deliver but also push our suppliers and competitors to do the same.
Playground Design
Greener playgrounds as part of your procurement
Across the UK, councils are driving toward ambitious carbon reduction goals by 2030 and achieving them takes more than switching to greener energy or boosting recycling efforts. Every decision matters. From choosing construction materials to selecting the right playground equipment supplier, embedding sustainability into procurement sends a powerful message that aligns with your values.
As part of our mission, we have worked with councils across the country to deliver more sustainable playgrounds and help contribute to their carbon reduction goals. These choices don’t just help to reduce your environmental impact; they create a visible, lasting symbol of your commitment to responsible action.
Explore, Learn, Design: Greener Playgrounds
Read and learn more about our approach on working with recycled materials in playground components
The new look of a reduced carbon footprint
Architect Alexander Sundberg assures that TexMade™ posts and plastic alternatives, developed from textile waste and post-consumer sources, rival steel and plastic in durability. Playground solutions can be as colourful as your heart desires – but with a dramatically reduced carbon footprint.
New | Online magazine
Designing Greener Playgrounds
Welcome to a discussion on the evolving landscape of playgrounds – an essential aspect of childhood that now takes a turn towards responsible materials and practices.
In this magazine we'll delve deeper into the specifics of these materials, exploring the benefits they bring to playground design and their positive influence on the overall environmental footprint of these spaces.
“Stroud declared a climate emergency because there is a climate emergency! There has been for many years, and as a public authority, as a council, we think it’s our role to lead by example.”
Councillor Martin Brown - Stroud District Council Chair of Community Services & Licensing Committee, Green Councillor representing Bisley
What's the difference between Born Green and Made Green materials?
Born Green
Born Green means our products are made from natural hardwoods like Robinia. Robinia is highly durable and does not require any chemical wood preservatives. KOMPAN Robinia products are also available with a FSC® certification (C004450).
Made Green
Made Green products are made up of up to 95% post-consumer recycled materials: ocean waste, used textiles, used plastic bags, etc. Made Green products have approximately 50% reductions in carbon emissions compared to traditional products made from virgin sources.
BLOQX Climbing
Using BLOQX™ panels made from 75% post-consumer recycled waste instead of virgin plastic reduces carbon emissions on the panels. BLOQX Climbing panels are made from 75% post-consumer recycled waste, e.g. household waste, and the Teal colour version is made from 75% ocean waste from the maritime industry like old fishing nets and ropes –
Robinia Products
Using nature’s materials, such as Robinia and pine wood from responsible forestry, where wood is bred for harvesting, and both planting and harvesting are carefully controlled, resulting in highly durable playgrounds. Robinia does not need any chemical wood preservatives. Robinia products are also available with FSC® certification (C004450). -
Rotomoulded Components
Coloured rotationally moulded components used for Supernova, Spinner Bowl, Tipi Carousel etc. made from 33% recycled waste, e.g. household waste. The blue-green version is made from recycled waste from the ocean - Made Green.
Extruded Aluminium
Extruded aluminium profiles are made using lower-carbon aluminium – Made Green. Using lower-carbon aluminium profiles produced with renewable energy sources instead of using aluminium profiles made with traditional energy sources reduces carbon emissions. If you want to learn more about our materials, follow the link below.
TexMade™ Posts
Using TexMade™ posts made from >95% post-consumer recycled textile and plastic waste instead of steel posts reduces carbon emissions by 74% CO2e/kg when comparing 1m steel post (2mm pipe thickness) to 1m TexMade™ post.
Our highly durable, innovative TexMade™ posts are made from >95% post-consumer recycled textile and plastic waste – Made Green.
Hercules Rope
Hercules Ropes in high-quality polyester fibres offer high strength with balanced elongation properties, are very resistant to abrasion, and are incredibly durable in all weather conditions. The ropes are tightly wrapped with EcoYarn™ in >95% post-consumer recycled material, which is melted onto each individual strand. . Using Hercules Rope Yarn made from >95% post-consumer recycled waste reduces carbon emissions by 30% on average. Available in 8 colours.
Decks & Steps
Decks in playground structures are made from 75% post-consumer recycled waste - Made Green.
Q&A on recycled materials
All recycled qualities are better to use if the alternative is using new/virgin material. However, when choosing between a post-industrial or a post-consumer quality, the post-consumer type saves much more CO2e. It is a harder job to use post-consumer qualities. With post-consumer qualities, you must collect, sort, and clean the waste before it can be used again. But the material is saved and can be used again, saving the environment from new /virgin material entering our world and preventing the waste from going into the waste incineration or landfill.
KOMPAN is using narrower post-consumer waste streams, like used textiles, fishing nets, and food packaging post-consumer waste. We can control the quality better than if we used very broad waste. The household waste can be a mix of many different sources.
We only use suppliers with the highest quality standards. It is very important that the waste comes from high-quality suppliers. We have a close connection to our suppliers, visiting them regularly. We are also running tests of all materials we are using to ensure high quality. We do not compromise our high quality and safety standards; they fully apply also to our recycled material qualities.
The Ocean waste we use in our products originates from Europa and the Arctic oceans. It is based on post-consumer streams collected from the maritime industry, such as fishing nets, ropes and trawls.
UV protection is added to all our recycled qualities. Some of our post-consumer recycled materials have no added colour pigment; they are the natural colour from e.g. fishing nets. The colour may vary. We only add UV protection and keep the natural colour from, e.g., the fishing nets.
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