playground planning
How to design Inclusive Playgrounds
What makes a Public Playground Inclusive?
When designing an inclusive playground it is important to be mindful of all the different needs and behaviours of the users. It is all about creating equity in access and use. By following our universal design principles you are well equipped to plan and design your inclusive play area.
Our sales and design team based in our Galway office have years of experience in the play industry and can help guide you in the right direction.
Inclusive Playgrounds Explained
1. Accessibility
Start by ensuring accessibility to the playground and the surrounding area. Plan for easy access to transportation, parking and restrooms with ramps and wide pathways to and from the playground. If you are planning a gated playground ensure that gates are wide enough to facilitate users with mobility difficulties. Avoid physical obstacles such as kerbs and gates placed out of reach. Accessible safety surfacing is necessary to allow for all users to be involved in the play.
2. Stay Ability
Next, ensure everyone feels comfortable in the playground, especially children with sensory or physical challenges. Children have differing needs for socialising and retracting, and so do caregivers. Additional facilities nearby will encourage longer visits, i.e. toilets, water fountains, café etc. Make sure that the playground caters for all ages and all abilities by providing shade to avoid overheating, seating and tables for a break and create a layout with transparent sight lines for easy supervision and contact across the play area.
3. Usability
Lastly, getting around the play area is hugely important. So, when designing your inclusive play area ensure users will be able to get around and reach the equipment. Implement play equipment that provides play from all sides and spaciousness to support diverse body sizes, abilities and positions. Also make sure that elevated-level and ground-level play activities are accessible and usable for users with mobility difficulties, either by a ramp structure or easy-access surfacing material. Ramp structures provide access to levels of play otherwise not reachable by wheelchair users.
How to make my playground more inclusive
Sensory Play Events
Accessibility also means considering users with sensory or cognitive disabilities. Considering sensory play events in your inclusive playground design is a great way of activating equal play opportunities. Factors to consider are tangible and visual textures, areas with equipment for soothing body pressure, auditive movement motivators, and sensory experiences, e.g., scented plants.
Challenging Play Opportunities
Varied play equipment is the main success criterium when planning inclusive and universal playgrounds—having a choice of physically challenging, thrilling and sensory stimulating activities that can be played in groups or individually will ensure playability. Choosing spinning, swinging, and rocking equipment for the physical thrill will ensure success. For sensory stimulation, a choice of natural features and tactile, sound and visual elements to play with, alone or together, will increase play retention.
Guiding Design Language
Create signal transitions in the playground and play area by using different textures and contrasting colours placed strategically in the surfacing. This will help users with vision impairments and a range of users with sensory disabilities navigate the playground.
Dramatic play elements such as themed equipment will help many users connect and relate to the playground.
Individual Play and Breaks
Respites are essential to avoid overstimulation. A quiet area to retract to is a need for many users. Consider site amenities with accessible seating and table options, and solitary play areas with play equipment which can be used individually as this is also crucial for inclusive playground design.
Activities for Social Interaction
Social interaction is important for all of us. Therefore, an inclusive playground must also include play equipment and activities that stimulates social interactions; such as “two-of-each” parallel play options for training social skills. Placing swings, springers or spinning devices side by side is an amazing way to create a parallel play option.
Variety in Play Value
Variety in play opportunities is about creating a play space with wild and quiet activities. An inclusive playground should provide physical, social-emotional, cognitive-creative activities but also allow for breaks with seating and areas for retraction from play.
Why are inclusive Playgrounds important?
Creating equity in outdoor play opportunities is the primary obligation of communities because everyone benefits from playing together regardless of ability, nationality, gender or age.
Research shows that children with disabilities who play with typically developing children grow and develop their abilities and strengths, thus gaining a positive self-image.
Children with disabilities, just like all other kids, love the thrill and joy of playing with others.
Children’s physical, social-emotional, cognitive and creative development is not only supported by play, it is developed through play.
Why Choose KOMPAN? KOMPAN’s mission of creating truly inclusive, universal playgrounds has been part of our journey since the 1980s, and ADA playgrounds since the 1990s. We have more than 50 years of experience designing play solutions for all abilities. Over the past few years, the KOMPAN Play Institute has intensified its observation studies and revisited the core insights of universal play.
Research on inclusive playgrounds
A Design Checklist for Success with Inclusive Playgrounds
Equality in play – Survey on playground use in children with disabilities
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