subject: The safety of each individual piece of playground equipment [print this page] The safety of each individual piece of playground equipment
The safety of each individual piece of outdoor playground equipment as well as the layout of the entire play area should be considered when designing or evaluating a playground for safety. Since falls are a very common playground hazard pattern, the installation and maintenance of protective surfacing under and around all equipment is crucial to protect children from severe head injuries. Because all playgrounds present some challenge and because children can be expected to use equipment in unintended and unanticipated ways, adult supervision is highly recommended. The handbook provides some guidance on supervisory practices that adults should follow. Appropriate equipment design, layout, and maintenance, as discussed in this handbook, are also essential for increasing public playground safety.
A china playground equipment should allow children to develop gradually and test their skills by providing a series of graduated challenges. The challenges presented should be appropriate for agerelated abilities and should be ones that children can perceive and choose to undertake. Toddlers, preschool- and school-age children differ dramatically, not only in physical size and ability, but also in their intellectual and social skills. Therefore, age-appropriate playground designs should accommodate these differences with regard to the type, scale, and the layout of equipment. Recommendations throughout this handbook address the different needs of toddlers, preschool-age, and school-age children; "toddlers" refers to children ages 6 months through 2 years of age,
"preschool-age" refers to children 2 through 5 years, and "school-age" refers to children 5 through 12 years. The overlap between these groups is anticipated in terms of outdoor playground equipment manufacturer use and provides for a margin of safety.Playground designers, installers and operators should be aware that the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) is a comprehensive civil rights law which prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability. Titles II and III of the ADA require, among other things, that newly constructed and altered State and local government facilities, places of public accommodation, and commercial facilities be readily accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities. Recreation facilities, including play areas, are among the types of facilities covered by titles II and III of the ADA.
The Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Boards also referred to as the "Access Board" has developed accessibility guidelines for newly constructed and altered play areas that were published October 2000. The Indoor play equipment areas guidelines are a supplement to the Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines (ADAAG). Once these guidelines are adopted as enforceable standards by the Department of Justice, all newly constructed and altered play areas covered by the ADA will be required to comply. These guidelines also apply to play areas covered by the Architectural Barriers Act (ABA).
