Playgrounds: danger or risk? Do you know the difference?
A top priority for those of us who create industry-leading playground safety surfacing is minimizing the risk of injury. However, that doesn’t mean we don’t understand the importance of active, adventurous playtime that allows kids...Read more
The relationship between play value and outdoor play spaces in Wuhan, China
In the city of Wuhan, improper planning policies and design concepts of residential areas have broken and even destroyed children’s outdoor play spaces, a recent research paper reveals. This has caused some physical and psychological...Read more
Osteria Ai Pioppi. If you want to play, you have to push and sweat
Bruno Ferrin is the inventor and creator of an ecological park in Nervesa della Battaglia, in the province of Treviso, in Italy. The particularity of this park, for children and adults both, is that there...Read more
Athens playground aims to inspire hope for Greece’s future
Just a few steps away from the Acropolis, one of the world’s most famous historical sites, in the Centre of Athens, rises a playground inspired by Pieter Bruegel’s 1560 painting ‘Children’s Games’. The Six Thresholds playground,...Read more
An alert and call for action – a new standard threat to play provision
This is an alert. An alert to all those – across Europe and wider – where European play equipment and surfacing standards are held, or will be held, to apply. A new Standard is being...Read more
The City of Ghent’s strategic plan to be a child and youth-friendly city
With more than 250.000 inhabitants, Ghent is the 3rd largest city of Belgium. In 2013, the newly elected city council announced its commitment to become the most child and youth-friendly city (CYFC) of the Flemish...Read more
Adventure playground to open in the heart of New York City
An adventure playground will open in the heart of New York City this May. play:ground, a local voluntary organisation will open a 5,000 square foot play space on Governors Island where children can imagine a world of...Read more
Integrating play space within the public realm
The Täby Torg project, located in Sweden is a multifunctional public plaza organised into six individual squares. The Polyform Architects main concept was to create a ‘Space of Opportunities’: a dynamic public space where city...Read more
Natural space trains children’s mind
In northern European cities, there is a large number of wild and adventure playgrounds, where children can learn from nature and from their personal experiences. There are playgrounds planned in a way to stimulate an...Read more
Inclusive design promotes play equality
1 in 20 children aged 14 years old or younger live with a form of disability, either moderate or severe, according to UNICEF. Such figures raise questions as to whether the majority of the existing...Read more
Denmark gets 10 permanent bicycle playgrounds
In Canada and the United States there is no comprehensive, consistent bike education programs, however a number of initiatives are underway to determine how to introduce a comprehensive system. However, European children benefit from a...Read more
Playgrounds need to be more challenging to benefit children
Children’s playgrounds are not challenging enough, says Susan Herrington, a professor in the school of landscape architecture at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. Herrington conducted her research with colleague Dr. Mariana Brussoni, observing...Read more
Incorporating play into pedestrian walkways
When it comes to designing narrow public spaces such as street sidewalks, pedestrian bridges and pathways in general, designers are often forced by the functional and spatial constraints to discard play as a priority. However,...Read more
Green schoolyards boost children’s health and learning
‘Healthy School Yards’ is a Dutch sustainability programme to encourage children’s engagement with nature, which has a positive impact on their social, academic and physical health. The project ‘Healthy School Yards’ was introduced to schools in...Read more