Is Your Playground Ready For The Summer? | Wicksteed Wicksteed

News and Media

Is your playground ready for the summer?

Posted by The Wicksteed Team, 24 Jul 23

News and Articles

With the weather warmed up and summer in full swing, it’s important to make sure that your playground is ready to cope with the busiest season of the year!

Although checking whether your playground is fit for purpose might seem obvious, there are lots of things that can catch you off-guard. These issues can range from minor inconveniences for your users to major safety concerns, so it’s best to be thorough to make sure everyone who visits your playground during the summer has a great experience.

To help you prepare, we’ve got a few tips and best practices for keeping your playground as safe, accessible, and enjoyable as possible during summer, no matter its size or location.

 

How to make sure your playground is safe

The most important thing you can do to prepare for the summer boom is to make sure that your playground is safe for everyone. During the summer months, your playground equipment will be subjected to increased stress from frequent use with longer dwell times.

Firstly, as recommended by the BSI's guidance on playground safety, ensure that your inspection regime is up to date. Weekly inspections should be carried out and these are mainly a visual check to ensure there are no obvious signs of vandalism, hazards or high wear. Quarterly inspections should be carried out by a competent person; these look more in depth at the equipment and will rely on the inspector having a basic knowledge of the equipment and appropriate tools. An annual inspection should be carried out by an RPII inspector.

Don’t forget to include your playground's surfacing in the inspection. If it’s showing signs of wear and tear, you might want to consider investing in replacement or refurbishment. Most playground equipment accidents result in a fall, so making sure the ground is covered with durable and protective surfacing is a must to ensure maximum safety.

Wicksteed offers various types of protective surfacing for different environments, including:
  • Eco-Tumble a shredded, bound recycled rubber surface which can be laid in different depths to achieve different fall heights. Not suitable for sites where drainage is an issue or schools.
  • Safety Grass, an unobtrusive option which is installed directly onto grass and blends with turf, with incredible impact-absorbing protection.
  • Wet Pour Safety Surfacing, a rubber bound surface which comes in a variety of colours and provides excellent fall protection qualities.
 

Assessing and replacing your playground equipment

There’s lots of choice when it comes to acquiring new and exciting playground equipment. Your playground may feel a little bit outdated, or you might have the extra space to accommodate another feature. It’s always worth giving your visitors amazing, unique memories that they won’t forget! Take some time during the summer to visit your play spaces, get feedback from users and understand what works, what might need replacing or adding, and what is popular.

Here at Wicksteed, we’re always innovating with creative, new playground equipment, like our Universal range which provides varied experiences for kids of all ages and abilities, or our Quintessential range with its cost-effective use of materials that suit smaller budgets and spaces. These inclusive and stylish multiplays could help to take your play area to the next level without breaking the bank.

We’re always happy to talk you through your options when it comes to enhancing your playground; we know that every playground needs to be given the care and attention it deserves! If you’re interested in chatting with our sales team about what Wicksteed can do to help get your playground ready for the summer, you can get in touch with our friendly team by calling us on 01536 517028, sending us an email, or submitting an enquiry here.
  Read More
With the weather warmed up and summer in full swing, it’s important to make sure that your playground is ready to cope with the busiest season of the year!

Although checking whether your playground is fit for purpose might seem obvious, there are lots of things that can catch you off-guard. These issues can range from minor inconveniences for your users to major safety concerns, so it’s best to be thorough to make sure everyone who visits your playground during the summer has a great experience.

To help you prepare, we’ve got a few tips and best practices for keeping your playground as safe, accessible, and enjoyable as possible during summer, no matter its size or location.

 

How to make sure your playground is safe

The most important thing you can do to prepare for the summer boom is to make sure that your playground is safe for everyone. During the summer months, your playground equipment will be subjected to increased stress from frequent use with longer dwell times.

Firstly, as recommended by the BSI's guidance on playground safety, ensure that your inspection regime is up to date. Weekly inspections should be carried out and these are mainly a visual check to ensure there are no obvious signs of vandalism, hazards or high wear. Quarterly inspections should be carried out by a competent person; these look more in depth at the equipment and will rely on the inspector having a basic knowledge of the equipment and appropriate tools. An annual inspection should be carried out by an RPII inspector.

Don’t forget to include your playground's surfacing in the inspection. If it’s showing signs of wear and tear, you might want to consider investing in replacement or refurbishment. Most playground equipment accidents result in a fall, so making sure the ground is covered with durable and protective surfacing is a must to ensure maximum safety.

Wicksteed offers various types of protective surfacing for different environments, including:
  • Eco-Tumble a shredded, bound recycled rubber surface which can be laid in different depths to achieve different fall heights. Not suitable for sites where drainage is an issue or schools.
  • Safety Grass, an unobtrusive option which is installed directly onto grass and blends with turf, with incredible impact-absorbing protection.
  • Wet Pour Safety Surfacing, a rubber bound surface which comes in a variety of colours and provides excellent fall protection qualities.
 

Assessing and replacing your playground equipment

There’s lots of choice when it comes to acquiring new and exciting playground equipment. Your playground may feel a little bit outdated, or you might have the extra space to accommodate another feature. It’s always worth giving your visitors amazing, unique memories that they won’t forget! Take some time during the summer to visit your play spaces, get feedback from users and understand what works, what might need replacing or adding, and what is popular.

Here at Wicksteed, we’re always innovating with creative, new playground equipment, like our Universal range which provides varied experiences for kids of all ages and abilities, or our Quintessential range with its cost-effective use of materials that suit smaller budgets and spaces. These inclusive and stylish multiplays could help to take your play area to the next level without breaking the bank.

We’re always happy to talk you through your options when it comes to enhancing your playground; we know that every playground needs to be given the care and attention it deserves! If you’re interested in chatting with our sales team about what Wicksteed can do to help get your playground ready for the summer, you can get in touch with our friendly team by calling us on 01536 517028, sending us an email, or submitting an enquiry here.
  Read More