Journal
Play
play n. games, exercise, or other activity undertaken for pleasure, especially by children. Although there is a reference to exercise in this definition, to most of us the word ‘play’ conjures up images of children expressing their innate exuberance and giving their imaginations free rein, untrammelled by rules and conventions. However, with the growing concerns about childhood obesity, local authorities have made the promotion of fitness their top priority, almost to the detriment of other elements of play. “Play, in our view does not just mean use of the basic motor skills, but the development of relationships, acceptance of challenge and discovery of feelings,” says Emma Austin from Bigfoot Play Systems. “From our experience, designing play equipment that provides multi-user activities encourages children to interact with and accept their peers which helps to dispel social difficulties in sharing and dominance.” There are a multitude of challenges for playground designers today and none bigger than addressing health and safety considerations. Nicholas Kennerley from the landscape architecture department of Trafford Borough Council is all too aware of this thorny issue. Comments in the national press from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) that parks should be “as safe as necessary, not as safe as possible” have only confused the situation. He says: “For these words to take effect, it would help greatly if RoSPA were to produce guidelines on the issue. For instance, if they provided examples of play situations involving water, trees, rocks (mainly existing natural features) and explaining what sort of risks can be deemed acceptable, this would provide designers with material to reassure their clients and communities and help us to create more diverse play spaces.” Too often, new play provision responds cautiously to health and safety guidance and runs the risk of being overly prescriptive and inhibiting the free expression that is central to a child’s development. “The biggest single challenge for playground designers is striking the right balance between risk and challenge,” says Viv Jebson, marketing and sales director of Sutcliffe Play. “This involves overcoming the public perception of risk in play to provide children with play spaces that are both challenging and stimulating.” Discuss this article
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