Playground Safety Guide

Each day, kids around the world get hours of enjoyment out of playgrounds. The playground is a haven, a place to have fun with their friends, safe from the bad in the world. Many adults have fond memories of spending their youth at the playground while many also have memories of injuries suffered on the monkey bars or the slide. Whether it's a scraped knee, or worse, injuries can be prevented on the playground with a little preparation and know-how. A grade was issued in 2004 by the National Program for Playground Safety to each state based on the safety of it's playgrounds. The nation had an average grade of C+. More than three quarters of playground injuries occurred on public playgrounds. The most common injury was a fracture, mostly from the elbow to the wrist. Fifteen percent of injuries were severe in nature and falls were the cause of almost eighty percent of all playground injuries. These statistics point to the importance of playground safety.

Playground Safety Week

Playground Safety Week, which runs from April 19 to April 25, calls for special attention and focus to be placed on the safety of playgrounds. During Playground Safety Week, parents are encouraged to conduct surveys of other parents at the playground. Ask the other parents about injuries their children have sustained, on what attractions those injuries occurred and what their suggestions for improving the playground would be. Parents can also challenge their school to an injury-free week on the playground, check for safety and integrity issues on playground attractions, and compile a list of playground rules with their children, among other things. It’s part of the National Program for Playground Safety, which was founded in October of 1995.

• National Playground Safety Week: Official site that discusses what the week is about.

• Information and Goals: Discusses the goals of Playground Safety week.

Playground Safety Rules and Tips

There are lots of things to do to keep kids safe on the playground. Make sure kids are always under adult supervision. Try to avoid playgrounds built on asphalt or concrete as the inevitable fall will be much worse than a playground on grass or cushioned material.. Swings should be spaced appropriately. The swings should be at least two feet apart and thirty inches from the support structures. No more than two swings should be present within the same support section. Elevated surfaces need guardrails o prevent falls. Openings that children crawl through need to be very wide so a child won’t get stuck. Pay special attention to rust on attractions. It could cut a child or significantly decrease the integrity of the attraction. It’s also important to make sure that playgrounds are age appropriate. Younger children should not play on the advanced equipment, just as older children shouldn't play on the smaller equipment. It’s also important to check chains, S-hooks, and similar equipment to make sure that they are closed to prevent injury.

• Injuries to Children: Report that discusses the most common playground injuries to children.

• Playgrounds and Head Injuries: Studies the connection between head injuries and older playgrounds.

• Playgrounds for Parents: Discusses what parents should look for in a playground.

• Schools and Playgrounds: Shows why playgrounds can be dangerous.

• Injury Prevention: Suggestions for playground safety.

Playground Safety Grading

Playgrounds are graded on a scoring system that goes up to 24. There are separate categories with separate requirements. Each checked requirement earns points. A 20-24 is an A grade, 19-17 a B, 16-13 a C, 12-8 is a D, and 7 or below is an F. The categories are supervision, age-appropriate design, fall surface, and equipment maintenance. The supervision category stipulates that adults must be present at the playgrounds and children must be easily visible or easily viewed, even in crawl spaces. The age-appropriate design category stipulates that there should be separate playgrounds for children between the ages 2-5 and 5-12, platforms must have guardrails, and that children are unable to climb support structures of the equipment. The fall surfacing category has requirements for suitable surfacing materials, equipment not over 8 feet, and covered concrete. The equipment category requires that no equipment has missing or broken parts, head entrapments, splinters or cracks, noticeable gaps or rust.

• Playground Safety Grading Sheet:Official grading sheet from the National Program for Playground Safety(.pdf).

• Playground Safety Publications: List of publications discussing different aspects of playground safety.

• Playground Injuries: Outlines common injuries in the playground.

• General Tips: General Playground Safety tips.

Playground Safety Innovations

Noticeable improvements to playground safety have been made in the last twenty years. Asphalt and concrete are no longer used in constructing playgrounds. Softer materials have been developed and are being used to cushion the inevitable playground fall. Metal equipment is used far less often, being replaced by safer plastic and minimal metal and in the framework of the equipment. This also helps in reducing the occurrence of rust and broken metal. When metal materials are used they are now often coated in a rubber material which also helps prevent rust and injury. Playground designs in general are safer as newer playgrounds provide age appropriate equipment instead of equipment designed for a wide range of ages.

• Handbook for Safety: Large handbook for playground safety(.pdf).

• Boundless Playgrounds: Non-profit group helping to playgrounds for children of all abilities.

• Playground Injuries: Discusses safety issues as they relate to playground equipment.

• Home Playground Safety: Guide for private playgrounds(.pdf).