Category Archives: Play spaces

On playgrounds, play areas, play spaces

The wobbly bridge revisited, or the problem with playground standards

Posted on April 29, 2013 | 12 Comments

3 boys in playground, one falling off a beamIn my last post, I used the example of a wobbly bridge to highlight why it is hard to manage risk in play spaces. I promised to say more about the role of equipment standards in managing risk, and why they need to be rethought. This post delivers on that promise.

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Posted in Outdoor play, Play spaces, playground, Public policy, Risk

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The wobbly bridge, or why it is harder to manage risk in playgrounds than factories

Posted on April 22, 2013 | 5 Comments

Rope bridge in play area“How can we make our playground safe?” It seems a simple enough question. Yet the answer is anything but (and even the question is not as simple as it looks). In fact, managing risk in a playground is much more complex than in a factory or a workplace. The reason for this is down to a fundamental difference in the nature of the task. One way to grasp this difference is to think about a wobbly bridge.

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Posted in Outdoor play, Play spaces, playground, Risk

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Seven principles of playground design

Posted on February 20, 2013 | 42 Comments

Lion sculpture in Aaholm school playgroundI really appreciate the thoughtful comments to my last post about playground design. It prompted me to summarise my own views in the form of seven design principles (plus an extra one for luck). What do you think of them? Feel free to continue the conversation!

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Posted in Outdoor play, Play spaces, playground, Public space

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Whose playground is it anyway?

Posted on February 18, 2013 | 26 Comments

playground motorbikeAt last September’s Open for Play seminar, London playground designer Jerry Cooper of Theories Landscapes wondered whether there was a danger of losing sight of the child who – he argues – should be at the centre of playground design thinking. “Are we,” he asked, “turning ‘play’, a free-flowing and natural activity, into an adult controlled, designed and spatially confined event in places and ways that are adult-devised, justified and rationalised?” It’s a good question (which Jerry reminded me about in an email exchange last week).

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Posted in Outdoor play, Play spaces, playground, Public space

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Open for Play: The Director’s Cut

Posted on October 29, 2012 | 5 Comments

Do you want to enjoy all the presentations from last month’s Open for Play seminar – on designing for play in playgrounds, streets and public spaces – from the comfort of your own office (or living room, studio, or bedroom)? Well, here is your chance. The full programme of formal presentations is now available to view online in glorious video and audio.

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Posted in Outdoor play, Play spaces, playground, Public space, Urbanism

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Inspiration from Copenhagen

Posted on October 22, 2012 | 11 Comments

Tower in Valbyparken, CopenhagenHow does Denmark’s capital city meet its children’s need for outdoor play – and what can other nations learn from its approach? For a well-researched, gloriously detailed, beautifully presented answer, look no further than a new report from Australian architect Tanya Vincent.

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Posted in Outdoor play, Play spaces, Public policy

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