PlayEquip Blog. New ideas for the world of playground & fitness equipment

The changing nature of children’s playgrounds over the decades has had to encompass not only the changing trends in playground equipment but also new ideas around health and safety. In some cases, the extent of this means that in some inner cities, equipment has been removed to help keep children safe.

However, play can never be entirely risk-free. Children will always need to play, to push themselves and to compete with others and, yes, they will sometimes injure themselves. Thankfully the more enlightened local authorities are collaborating with playground designers to ensure that playgrounds and playground equipment is not only safe but also fun, educational and challenging for older or more adventurous children. This is also the challenge for playground equipment designers like us

Working with Nature

The rapid expansion of towns and cities means that millions of children now live in heavily populated areas with little or no access to the natural world around them. Town and city planners realise that children need to have the opportunity to connect in some way with nature, and this is increasingly reflected in playground and playground equipment design.

Playground designers are turning away from old-style plastic, and metal equipment bolted into concrete wastelands. Instead, they are embracing natural playground equipment that is made from more sustainable and environmentally friendly natural wood and increasingly siting equipment within wooded and grassy areas. The natural playground equipment itself is designed to be stimulating and thought-provoking, often coming with information attached for children to read showing where the wood came from. Playground equipment goes through rigorous testing before a design is deemed suitable for use, and it manages to balance the need for safe, exciting play without entirely eliminating all risk.
Sustainability is now a key part of any modern design. A buyer is now better informed about sustainability and would expect any playground equipment supplier to do their upmost to supply equipment that is both durable and eco friendly.

Working with the surroundings

Going totally natural of course, doesn’t suit every circumstance. Sometimes injecting colour into the design helps to make playground equipment standout. Often an addition of colour brightens a space and makes it more welcoming. In a way playground has no restrictions on shape or form. This mean we can let loose and create bold and thought provoking designs that inspire and induce creativity. The creativity is one of the most important parts of children’s play

Play for All Ages

To help combat a growing obesity crisis, many local communities have got together with local councils to design and facilitate play areas where people of all ages can gather. One of the newest trends is to combine traditional-style children’s playground equipment with fitness equipment such as static bicycles, rowing machines or weights. Monkey bars, stepping stones and easily navigable obstacles can be used by families who enjoy playing and exercising together.

The very latest ideas in outdoor playground equipment use technology such as lights and sounds along with multi-sensory apparatus to stimulate motor and thinking skills in young children and improve coordination and reflexes. These work alongside physical activity to improve mental as well as overall health.

It is clear that city playgrounds are beginning to encompass more of the need for communities to come together and access the outdoors while ensuring local children have somewhere to safely play

The humble playground plays a vital role in the childhood memories of so many people. Whether it was a trip with your parents before you started your school days or a special reward on the way home from school, there is something about a playground that enthrals and invites. For the last few months, children all over the world have had to go without their trips to the park as the majority have been closed during the pandemic. Now, however, as some of the restrictions are being lifted, a trip to the park is possible once more.

Playground equipment is, in fact, a relatively new addition to our urban landscape and one that has become increasingly popular over the decades since the first one was built. While some toys and games have gone out of fashion, the playground has become more and more popular. as it ever was and is a great place for children to enjoy being outdoors while getting plenty of fresh air. The benefits of what outdoor playgrounds bring to communities are common knowledge. The fantastic value of these playgrounds is now understood for both physical and mental health.

The first playground

The concept of the playground was first considered in Germany, where it was the idea of development psychologists like Friedrich Frobel, who recommended playgrounds for children as a developmental aid and also to help teach them good manners and a sense of fair play. The first playgrounds were mostly attached to schools and often referred to as “sand gardens”. In 1859 the very first purpose-built playground that was accessible to the public opened in a park in Manchester. The first playgrounds began to appear in the United States in 1886; however, until the turn of the 20^th century, playgrounds in public spaces were not common.

What came next?

The first playgrounds were not all that popular, but as urbanisation began to take place, the areas where children might previously have played got swallowed up and the need for dedicated public green spaces, not just for children but for everyone, increased. The Victorian era saw a huge surge in the number of public parks all over the country and with them an increase in the number of playgrounds. Health and Safety was non-existent at this time, and the playgrounds that were created were certainly not for the fainthearted. However, they were the start of bigger and better things that were to come.

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(image taken from https://www.earthlymission.com/how-dangerous-playgrounds-were-100-years-ago-2/)

Post War playgrounds

During the war, many of the playgrounds, located as they were in larger cities, were bombed out and a generation of children once again had to make their own entertainment. This often led to the somewhat dangerous practice of playing on the rubble left behind on the bombed out buildings of the city. These sites were commonly referred to as “junk playgrounds”. These sights in turn evolved into the very first “adventure playgrounds” which are still up and running today in many urban environments throughout the UK.

Lady Allen of Hurtwood, who was an English landscape architect, became heavily involved in causes centred around children during World War 2. In 1948 established the World Organisation for Early Childhood Education. She was a huge fan of the more unstructured playgrounds that rose up after the war claiming that they fostered a greater sense of imagination in children than the more structured playgrounds they had been used to. She was a firm believer in children learning through play, and declared it was better to break a limb than a spirit. These playgrounds were perhaps a precursor to the natural playground equipment that we see becoming increasingly popular today.

Image taken from http://www.architectureofearlychildhood.com/

The 1960s playground

In the 1960s, architects took on the playground and reinvented it with brutalist modern designs. Concrete and metal were the material of choice with inspiration coming from castles, dungeons and even large ships. Climbing frames based on space rockets were also featured heavily as the race to put a man in space was a concept followed by many. These were spaces designed specifically for children to play in and be inventive, but many of them were also a project in modern architecture with placement, shape and design the overriding ideas behind their design.

The playground at the centre of the Pimlico, Churchill Gardens was so iconic that its centrepiece, a gigantic flying saucer which was poised at a rather dangerous angle is now a recreated exhibit in the RIBA gallery. Of course, with health and safety now an issue the reproduction is made of squishy foam and not concrete!

The 1990s playground

It might seem like it was only yesterday but the 1990s playground, the playground many of us will have experienced was a completely different concept to those that had come before it. This was the playground built for fun, with bright coloured equipment and more importantly bright coloured flooring that was designed with safety and fun in mind. Welcome to the age where health and safety began to make its way into the playground. Soft cushiony floors began to appear under playground equipment, designed to protect children from the nastier injuries they had previously been subjected to when falling off the swings or slipping off the end of the slide. These playgrounds were very popular right up to the 00s

The Churchill Gardens estate in Pimlico, London. Photograph: John Donat (https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/architecture-design-blog/2015/jun/09/brutalist-playgrounds-concrete-foam-riba-assemble)

The modern playground

With a surge interest in the environment and protecting the precious resources that nature has give us, the modern playground and equipment has seen an increase in interest for wooden playground equipment. Natural materials, clean lines and colours that blend into the environment are rapidly becoming the most popular choice. Not only that, but people no longer want to be exactly the same as each other and bespoke playground equipment is coming into its own as people look for something that is unique and will fit perfectly into the space and environment that they have selected for it. Wooden climbing frames, log balance beams and stepping “stones” and natural rope features are significant additions to the natural playgrounds that are popping up all over the place and are perfectly designed to fit the new idea of being more in tune with the environment.

custom made playground equipment elephant and castle

Over recent decades, local authorities in the UK have been busy closing children’s play areas; in some cases selling off the land for commercial purposes. Schools and parks have been dispensing with playground equipment either to optimise space for classroom buildings or, in the case of parks, to save on maintenance costs.

But at what cost does all this come and how does it affect the nation’s children?

Effects on Health

According to research carried out by the Association of Play Industries, hundreds of playgrounds have been closed since 2014 in England and this is undoubtedly one of the factors contributing to the increase in child obesity. And with almost a third of children aged 2-15 officially obese or overweight, according to government statistics, outdoor play areas with dedicated playground equipment has never been more necessary to counter the decline in physical and mental health. Children who are cooped up indoors with no outlet for their energy are more likely to suffer from depression and feelings of isolation.

Why Children Need to Play

Play is essential for the healthy development of life skills. Through playing with others, children learn how to safely interact and communicate with others; they learn skills such as problem solving and social skills such as sharing and helping others. Outdoor play also allows children to learn about the environment and can give them a lifelong love for the outdoors. Crucially, being able to play outdoors especially where robust natural playground equipment is provided, allows children to use their natural and often exuberant energy constructively.

How Outdoor Playgrounds Benefit Children

Children love having the opportunity to run around and play games as much as possible in the fresh air with their friends. When playground equipment is incorporated into outdoor play areas the benefits increase massively. Physical fitness improves through active play and through the use of diverse pieces of playground equipment groups of children learn to work out routines amongst themselves whereby they can take turns on the equipment and even invent games. You will often see a sense of healthy competition creep in which encourages them to push themselves that bit further in a bid to improve their fitness levels, especially amongst older children.

Motor skills, balance and coordination all begin to improve the more children are allowed to play outdoors and by interacting with dedicated play equipment young children especially can develop their multi-sensory needs. As physical abilities and motor skills improve levels of confidence in their abilities and social skills usually improve too.

All of this contributes to a healthy dispersion of energy levels and a lowering of stress and over time improves a child’s ability to concentrate and apply themselves to whatever task is in hand. This means a boost in productivity and success in the classroom and in relationships with friends and family.

What Will Future Playgrounds Look Like?

Thankfully, the government, local authorities and schools are belatedly waking up to the damage done to our children by closing down playgrounds and are taking steps to remedy this by reinstalling play equipment where feasible. And with increasing concern for the environment the trend is towards more sustainable, durable and attractive natural playground equipment.

Many town halls are now designating cordoned-off areas and streets specifically for children to play in with, for instance tons of sand laid out as a city centre beach scene. In recent years even London’s Trafalgar Square was temporarily grassed over to create a family-friendly environment. Traffic is increasingly banned from urban streets to allow children to play and schools are turning to woodland play settings.

The new trend is to encourage creativity and independence among children to foster a healthier sense of wellbeing.

With more and more of us becoming aware of the consequences of weight gain and lack of exercise, particularly after the enforced lockdown many of us have recently had to endure, the need to get fit and have fun again has never been more important.

It is for this reason that trim trail equipment is enjoying a boost in popularity among adults and children alike as we all rush to embrace the great outdoors. Both families and schools are now returning to traditional ideas of mental health-boosting outdoor play for children, and what better way to do so than to install outdoor play equipment.

What is Trim Trail?

Trim trail has its origins in obstacle courses designed for military training in which participants run around an obstacle course navigating as many different obstacles as possible. Trim trail training is uniquely adaptable to all kinds of outdoor spaces large and small, which makes it a perfect choice for outdoor play equipment in schools and parks.

What Trim Trail Equipment Do You Need?

Usually consisting of monkey bars, benches and beams made from natural, sustainable wood you could also throw in ropes, tyre stepping stones and wobble boards to increase the fun and challenge factors. Wooden playground equipment with its much more natural and aesthetically pleasing appearance has a greater attraction for kids than formulaic, cheap-looking plastic. What’s more, it can help to encourage children to think and plan how best to use the equipment and can foster a spirit of friendly and fun competition.

Is Trim Trail Good for all Ages?

Undoubtedly yes it is. There are so many different pieces of equipment to choose from and so many ways in which you can formulate an obstacle course to suit your particular environment and the space available to you. Your trim trail can be made less challenging and more fun-filled for younger children or more complicated and more challenging for older children who may be ready to push themselves a little harder.

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The Benefits of a Trim Trail

By taking part in trim trail, children will not only massively improve their physical fitness levels but also their mental wellbeing too by being out in the fresh air and engaging with others. They can become more motivated to push themselves towards greater fitness while at the same time improving motor skills, strength and coordination. A hidden benefit is that children also learn how to take risks in a safe, supervised activity.

With the country in lockdown for the foreseeable future the question for many is how to get your daily exercise without breaking social distancing restrictions. The most obvious solution is to utilise whatever garden space you have but if you have a small outdoor space how can you best ensure a full exercise workout whilst having fun at the same time?

Using the space you have

Rather than simply jogging around the back garden every day which, let’s face it is going get very boring very quickly, why not look at installing some good quality outdoor wooden exercise equipment.

A smaller garden will need natural exercise equipment that is compact but still highly effective and useful and which can be used by more than one person at a time.

Introduce a bit of competition

A double outdoor sit-up bench, with the two benches sitting opposite each other, introduces an element of competition for extra interest plus the angles can be adjusted for different degrees of difficulty. Triple outdoor pull-up bars incorporating different heights offer the same opportunity for family competition, or you could opt for a single pull-up bar where space is at a premium. An outdoor squat and pull-up station is a compact piece of equipment excellent for building and maintaining muscle strength and suppleness in upper and lower body. Suggested exercises for this could include pull-ups, chin-ups, leg and knee raises and if you add a barbell with weights you could add weight-assisted squats and presses to your repertoire.

Step-up steps are very good for building stamina and improving cardio-vascular health, and fun when accompanied by music!

Upper body exercise

For upper body strength natural wooden monkey bars are the ultimate test and because these, like all our equipment are constructed from steel and timber, are strong and robust enough to withstand any amount of use by adults and children alike. Plus, because this particular piece is quite a substantial construction, should you neglect your garden exercise regime once the lockdown becomes a distant memory, the monkey bars could conceivably become an attractive pergola for climbing plants!

Jump around

A mini playground trampoline, designed to sit flush at ground level, to improve balance and general fitness, has to be the most fun option for all ages.

Exercising outdoors is an excellent way to get fit whilst having fun and boosting your levels of calcium-building vitamin D. Choose a good mix of natural outdoor gym equipment to suit all the family and who knows – this could kick-start a health habit all the family can sustain for years to come.

With confirmed cases of coronavirus cases being reported all over the world daily, and deaths attributed to the virus increasing, we find ourselves in uncharted water. The WHO has declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic. In the UK employers are asking non-key workers to work from home where possible and all but essential trips out of the home are now forbidden. Bars, restaurants, sports facilities and parks have closed, and at the end of last week, the government declared that schools would be closed to all children except those of keyworkers and vulnerable children including those with EHCPs. As we move into spring and the weather, hopefully, improves, this means that parents will be looking for something to do with their children in order to burn off all that excess energy from being cooped up away from their friends. Exercise is still so important, even more so in these strange times, and for those people who can exercise in the current circumstances, this is best achieved at home. So, if you are fortunate enough to have a garden here are some ways to utilise it.

How can you exercise in the garden?

The garden makes an excellent place to exercise. Not only is it free, but there is plenty of fresh air as well. While many people think of exercise as being something that you might need special equipment for, the good news is that there is actually plenty of things that you can do in your garden that don’t need any special equipment. General garden tasks are an excellent example of this. If you think about mowing a lawn, especially a large one, then you are walking backwards and forwards a lot, and then, of course, there is the lifting involved in emptying the grass out. Digging flowerbeds is also great exercise and when you combine it with picking up weeds means you are squatting and bending as well. Remember, exercise is about working different parts of the body, and getting your garden summer ready after a long winter could certainly count as a workout.

Cleaning the outside of your windows and your ledges, especially if it involves climbing a ladder is a great way to exercise outside as well. If you really just want to move your gym session outdoors then why not consider things like lunges, bicycles, jumping jacks, press-ups, burpees or even crunches. If you can do it in a gym without any special equipment, then you can probably do it in your garden as well. The same could be said for that weekly Pilates session. Move it outside and commune with nature at the same time. Being in the garden will really give you a chance to be at one with nature.

If you prefer something a little more strenuous or challenging, then why not contemplate moving your yoga session into the garden, the natural surroundings make it the perfect place for yoga. Any exercise routine with jumping jacks, press-ups and burpees, or other aerobic exercises can be done in your garden just as easily as it can indoors. Strength training can also be incorporated quite easily, walking lunges is one great exercise that you can incorporate, along with wall sits and press ups and your garden furniture can double up for exercises such as tricep dips too. In fact, once you move outside for your exercise, then you may be reluctant to move back indoors, and who could blame you? Of course, the British weather might have other ideas.

Equipment based exercise

Natural outdoor gym equipment offers a great way to get a workout in the garden without really noticing that you are doing exercise. Children love monkey bars, and don’t tell anyone, but plenty of adults do as well! They offer a really great way to improve coordination and upper body strength, and they are great fun too. If you don’t want to swing from one bar to another, which is harder then it looks, then they can work really well for pull-ups or chin-ups as well. Getting outside with the kids is something that many of us will be looking to do while we’re ‘on lockdown’ and many pieces of outdoor play equipment can double up as workout equipment for you too!

Wooden outdoor play equipment comes in a variety of different forms, so if you were thinking the choice is limited to swings and slides, then you would be wrong. A good quality garden trampoline is not only fun for the whole family but a great way to exercise outdoors. It is a workout for both the arms and legs, and once you get the hang of using it, it can also be useful for the core muscles too.

Monkey bars are, in fact, the perfect CrossFit solution that could fit perfectly into your garden and your exercise regime. If you don’t have children but would like to mimic the workout from a monkey bar workout, a pull-up bar, combined with a squat station could be the perfect solution. Exercising outdoors doesn’t mean you have to drag your weights bench outside, either. You could have a range of wooden outdoor gym equipment to suit your specific workout needs. From sit up benches to dip bars, natural gym equipment made from solid wood and stainless steel could be the durable (and beautiful) solution to getting just what you need for your workout in the great outdoors.

Conclusion

No one knows just how long this pandemic will last for, but one thing is very clear – as our movements become increasingly limited we need to find other ways in which we can exercise, especially if exercising is already an important part of our day to day routine. For many of us that might mean moving outdoors, especially as the weather improves, and using the space that we have. This might simply mean moving your current aerobic exercise routine outdoors, or it might mean creating a new routine that will incorporate the use of natural outdoor gym equipment. Whichever way you choose to move forward a good exercise routine will not only help to keep you healthy but can also assist in maintaining a sense of wellbeing; something that will be very important in the coming weeks and maybe months. Who knows – exercising in the garden could soon be a habit that we choose to keep up in the long run, making it an excellent hobby for years after this period of uncertainty. The NHS also have a helpful guide to home fitness that can pretty much be performed anywhere.

Kids, wherever they are, love to play and are naturally attracted to playground swings and equipment. You may be surprised to learn though that there are many differences around the world in what constitutes a suitable and safe play area.

Here in the UK we are very aware of the need to keep our children as safe as they can be whilst playing outside and at the same time we prefer natural environmentally friendly products. This is why natural wooden playground equipment is becoming more popular. We like our children’s outdoor playground equipment to be as safe and as sustainable as possible, but how do the rest of the world do it?

Japan

In contrast to the ‘safety first’ attitude we have here, the Japanese are perhaps not so hot on this. In fact the Japanese tend not to use safety surfaces as they don’t think it teaches a good example to children! A school in Tokyo has built a playground/sports area on the roof of the building. It could be described as semi-outdoors as it has a retractable roof which closes in bad weather. There is no outdoor play equipment though and definitely no safety flooring! There unique approach doesn’t just stop there. Many of their design can’t be seen anywhere else in the world and are truly inspiring. Check out this great article to see what we mean

Bethlehem

Sadly, children here learn to play behind the thickest walls they can find to protect themselves against gunfire at their school on the West Bank. Even though there’s no sign of any play equipment at all the children still somehow learn to play. An example of how play is innate in children and always finds a way no matter where children are. Activities such as parkour have become popular too as children find any means to challenge and entertain themselves using the environment around them.

Bhutan Monastery

Even though the children live under strict rules they are still allowed outside for play and socialisation and although there is no obvious sign of any play equipment, they have the spectacular scenery around to inspire them.

The USA

In America, the emphasis is very much on athleticism rather than academia in many high schools, and to this end schools pride themselves on the provision of gym space for cheerleaders to practice in and outdoor sports fields and running tracks. The benefit of outdoor wooden and natural play equipment has yet to take root in many US schools. Perhaps this as deemed too risky in a society where litigation and compensation is more common.

Averoy, Norway

There is a small island school which is connected to the mainland by a recently built tunnel and which has pupils from the ages of 5-13. These children are lucky enough to be able to play outside in the brisk fresh air among the trees but with rudimentary play equipment provided. Scandinavians are famed for their natural playgrounds which have been proven to create healthy minds and bodies

Russia

Despite Russia’s reputation for stern austerity they do set great store by encouraging their children to play, and playgrounds are provided all across the country in parks and public areas as well as in schools. Their playgrounds are very creative and often build very creative and natural playgrounds. Some of their playgrounds contain some quite wacky ideas! One playground is contained within a scaled down copy of Moscow City Kremlin while others have statues of bears, mermaids and even dragons beside the swings. By and large though Russian playgrounds are definitely not designed with ‘safety first’ and believe in the benefits of ‘risky play’.

The best eco-friendly playgrounds

Many countries are becoming keen to ditch plastics and unsustainable metals in favour of re-using and repurposing what they already have to make play equipment. The Wikado Playground in The Netherlands uses old windmills and modern wind turbines to construct a maze-like play area while in Thailand the Rubber Tree Playground features play equipment made from discarded tyres and bamboo.

The Lion’s Playground in Alabama, USA makes interesting use of 2000 recycled steel drums while in Brazil one children’s play area features a labyrinth made entirely from recycled cardboard.

We think way playgrounds are designed and built in each country is a true reflection of their society. When it comes to sustainable and natural outdoor playground equipment it’s good to know that some parts of the world at least are coming around to our way of thinking!

Natural play equipment offers more than you might think. Traditionally, new housing estates have been built to a certain formula where the available space is filled solely with buildings and with little thought of incorporating more than the minimum green space, usually in the form of a lifeless patch of grass.

Thankfully this is now changing with more enlightened local authorities setting out recommendations relating to the importance of developing public open spaces and play environments. The National Planning Policy Framework (2012) requires developers to provide the ‘appropriate amount of and mix of public open space provision.’ And we think natural play equipment fits with this perfectly.

Enhancement to Quality of Life

Developers and local authorities are at last waking up to the advantages of green spaces and play areas and the benefits to public health, particularly the health of our children. With the loss of so many school sports fields over recent decades opportunities for children to enjoy healthy outdoor play has diminished. Not least is the benefit to wildlife when areas of green space are created with the health of our ecological system in mind.

Natural Outdoor Play Equipment for Health Benefits

We have always known that outdoor play is the best route to good health for children. Every child should have the chance to play outdoors in the fresh air and in a safe environment and thankfully future developments will incorporate open, healthy green spaces where children can play on natural outdoor play equipment and explore the surroundings.

Abolish the Plastic

Now that developers are legally obliged to incorporate designated play areas into new estates, with clear guidance set out for how this should be done, there is a wonderful opportunity to embrace the benefits of natural playground equipment. Where outdoor play equipment has been provided in the past this has usually taken the form of cheap, mass-produced plastic items designed with a limited shelf-life. Modern outdoor play equipment made from durable, sustainable and safe hardwood timber and long-lasting stainless steel is not only good to look at it is environmentally friendly and eco-conscious too. Today’s families are all too aware of the damage plastics are doing to the planet and want local authorities and developers to plan new estates with sustainability in mind.

Safety First and Foremost

Children will always find ways to injure themselves and past playground developments have undoubtedly been far from the safest places for children to play. With this in mind safety surfacing is incorporated into wooden outdoor playgrounds which is not only less likely to cause serious injury but also fulfils the obligation to enhance and protect the natural environment. These safety surfacing options include grass mats and rubber mulch. Both of which are made from recycled rubber tyres.

Play is an essential part of a child’s development, and playgrounds provide an excellent space for children to explore and have fun. In recent years, natural playgrounds have become more prevalent due to environmental concerns, and they are very beneficial for not only the children that play there, but for the environment, as well. Here’s a list of some materials that can be used in a natural playground and the benefits they offer in terms of being environmentally friendly.

Rubber Safety Surfacing

There are three types of rubber safety surface – grass mats, rubber mulch and wet pour. All of these forms are designed to fit into the surrounding environment and can be customised to suit different areas. The rubber is taken from recycled tyres, removing these harmful objects from the ecosystem and turning them into a safe and pleasant play area. Rubber mulch is especially suited to the environment because it looks natural (depending on colour) and are less intrusive to the wildlife in the area. Grass mats promote the use of turf and seeding which therefore creates it’s own ecosystem amongst the blades of grass and roots. Grass also increases air quality which is often much needed in urban play grounds.

Old Tyres

Similar to rubber safety surfaces, reusing old tyres makes for a more environmentally friendly playground, as tyres are very durable and do not biodegrade, meaning they could potentially negatively impact the wildlife surrounding them. Problems such as fires, and therefore pollution, can be avoided by recycling tyres. Furthermore, using rubber is an effective tool when it comes to active play due its durability. In other words, rubber play equipment will likely not need to be replaced too often.

Logs

Using waste logs from tree surgeons removes the need for the surgeon to dispose of the unwanted wood and put it to good use as outdoor playground equipment. If not taken, the logs may be used for purposes such as firewood, which is not healthy for the environment (due to smoke pollution and the risk of the fire becoming hard to control). Like grass mats and rubber mulch, wooden playground equipment blends in with the environment and is resistant to changes in weather. This means it weathers at a similar rate to the surroundings, keeping it natural-looking, requires little maintenance and often are the most popular pieces of equipment on playgrounds.

Planting Trees

We do our best to plant as many trees and plant into all of our playgrounds. This well in turn improve the air quality of the playground and the surrounding area. After the installation of every playground, planting an oak tree is an extra touch we like to take. Oak is one of the primary woods that are used for wooden playground equipment so planting more trees allows the process to be more sustainable. The oak trees provide habitats for many different species of insect, bird and mammal, which allow the ecosystem to build and flourish.

Next time you’re looking to upgrade or install natural playground equipment, why not go eco-friendly and reap all the benefits to the environment as well as the benefits to the children that play there, by choosing wooden playground equipment.

oak tree for playgrounds — Oak tree planted for every playground we deliver

Old Ford Primary School Bespoke Playground

A couple of weeks ago we organised and designed quite an ambitious project for the W. R. BERKLEY CORPORATION team to take on. They are currently building one of London’s newest skyscrapers called ‘The Scalpel’ and soon showed what can be done when a corporation from the city works hard to put something back into the community.

A big thank you to the whole Scalpel team for all of their hard work and funding.

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