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Playground Safety

Playgrounds and outdoor play equipment can provide your child with fun, fresh air, and exercise, but they can also pose some safety hazards. Faulty equipment, improper surfaces, and careless behavior are just a few of the dangers that cause children on playgrounds to visit hospital emergency departments.

You can make the playground a place that's entertaining and safe for your child by checking equipment for potential hazards and following some simple safety guidelines. In addition, teaching your child how to play safely is important: if your child knows the rules of the playground, it's less likely he or she will get hurt.

Each year, about 200,000 children are treated in U.S. hospital emergency rooms for playground equipment-related injuries - an estimated 148,000 of these injuries involve public playground equipment and an estimated 51,000 involve home playground equipment. Also, about 15 children die each year as a result of playground equipment-related incidents. Most of the injuries are the result of falls. Most of the deaths are due to strangulations, though some are due to falls.

Protective Surfacing - Since almost 60% of all injuries are caused by falls to the ground, protective surfacing under and around all playground equipment can reduce the risk of serious head injury.

* Falls on asphalt and concrete can result in serious head injury and death. Do not place playground equipment over these surfaces. Also grass and turf lose their ability to absorb shock through wear and environmental conditions. Always use protective surfacing.

* Certain loose-fill surfacing materials are acceptable, such as the types and depths shown in the table.

* Certain manufactured synthetic surfaces also are acceptable; however, test data on shock absorbing performance should be requested from the manufacturer.

Fall Zones - A fall zone, covered with a protective surfacing material, is essential under and around equipment where a child might fall. This area should be free of other equipment and obstacles onto which a child might fall.

• Stationary climbing equipment and slides should have a fall zone extending a minimum of 6' in all directions from the perimeter of the equipment.

• Swings should have a fall zone extending a minimum of 6' from the outer edge of the support structure on each side.

The fall zone in front and back of the swing should extend out a minimum distance of twice the height of the swing as measured from the ground to the swing hangers on support structure.

Swing Spacing - To prevent injuries from impact with moving swings, swings should not be too close together or too close to support structures. Swing spacing should be:

• At least 8 inches between suspended swings and between a swing and the support frame.
• At least 16 inches from suing support frame to a pendulum see- saw.
• Minimum clearance between the ground and underside of swing seat should be 8 inches.
• Swing sets should be securely anchored.

Elevated Surfaces - Platforms more than 30" above the ground should have guardrails to prevent falls.

You can help make sure the playground is a safe place for your child.

Check your child

• Clothing can get trapped in equipment and strangle a child. Remove drawstrings and other cords from clothing. In the winter, use a neck warmer rather than a scarf. Use mitten clips instead of cords.

• Be sure that children younger than five years of age are supervised by an adult.

Safety Guidelines

The most important factors in evaluating the safety of any playground are surface, design and spacing, and equipment inspection and maintenance.

Surface

A proper playground surface is one of the most important factors in reducing injuries - and the severity of injuries - that occur when kids fall from equipment. The surface under the playground equipment should be soft enough and thick enough to soften the impact of a child's fall.

Adult Supervision

Parents can help prevent playground accidents by taking some precautions, ensuring that there is adult supervision at the playground, and making sure that any equipment that their child plays on is appropriate to his or her age and maturity level.

Adult supervision can help prevent injuries by making sure kids properly use any playground equipment and don't engage in unsafe behavior around it. If an injury does occur, an adult can assist the child and administer any needed first aid right away.

Design and Spacing

Playground equipment should be designed for two different age groups: 2- to 5-year-olds (preschool children) and 5- to 12-year-olds (school-age children). In the safest playgrounds, play areas for younger children are separated from those meant for older children and signs clearly designate each area to avoid any confusion.

Maintenance and Inspection

Whether your child plays on a home or public playground, it's important that you take a general look at the equipment to make sure that it is clean and well maintained.

Safe Swings, Seesaws, Slides, and Climbing Equipment

Swing Safety	Seesaw Safety	Slide Safety	Climbing Equipment Safety
Swings should be made of soft material such as rubber or plastic, not wood or metal.	Seesaw seats are like swings: one child per seat. If your child is too light to seesaw with a partner, he or she should find a different partner - not add another child to the same side of the seesaw.	Children should take one step at a time and hold onto the handrail when climbing the ladder to the top of the slide. They should not climb up the slide itself to get to the top.	Climbing equipment can be used safely if children are taught to use both hands and to stay well behind the person in front of them and beware of swinging feet. When they drop from the bars, kids should be able to jump down without hitting the equipment on the way down. Remind kids to have their knees bent and land on both feet.
Your child should always sit in the swing, not stand or kneel. Your child should hold on tightly with both hands while swinging, and when finished swinging, he or she should stop the swing completely before getting off.	Kids should always sit facing one another, not turned around.	Your child should always slide down feet first and sitting up, never head first on his back or stomach.	Too many children on the equipment at one time can be dangerous. Everyone should start on the same side of the equipment and move across it in the same direction.
Children should stay a safe distance from other children on swings, being careful not to run or walk in front of or in back of moving swings.	Teach your child to hold on tightly with both hands while on a seesaw, not to touch the ground or push off with his or her hands, and to keep feet to the sides, out from underneath the seesaw.	Only one child should be on the slide platform at a time, and kids shouldn't slide down in groups.	When climbing down, kids should watch for those climbing up; they should never race across or try to reach for bars that are too far ahead.
Kids should never ride with more than one child to a swing. Swings are designed to safely hold only one person.	Kids should stand back from a seesaw when it's in use. They should never stand beneath a raised seesaw, stand and rock in the middle, or try to climb onto it while it's in motion.	Your child should always check that the bottom of the slide is clear before sliding down. When he or she reaches the bottom of the slide, he or she should get off and move away from the end of the slide so it's clear for other kids to slide down.	Children who are younger than the age 5 may not have the upper body strength necessary for climbing and should only be allowed to climb on age-appropriate equipment. Preschoolers should only climb 5 feet high and school-age children should only climb 7 feet high.

Teaching Your Child About Playground Safety

Safe playground equipment and adult supervision are extremely important, but it's only half of the equation: Kids must know how to be safe and act responsibly at the playground. Here are some general rules to teach your child:

• Never push or roughhouse while on jungle gyms, slides, seesaws, swings, and other equipment.

• Use equipment properly - slide feet first, don't climb outside guardrails, no standing on swings, etc.

• If you jump off equipment, make sure that you check to make sure that there are no other children are in the way. When you jump, land on both feet with knees slightly bent.

• Leave bikes, backpacks, and bags away from the equipment and the area where you're playing so that no one trips over them and falls.

• Playground equipment should never be used if it is wet because moisture causes the surface to be slippery.

• During the summertime, playground equipment can become uncomfortably or even dangerously hot, especially metal slides. So use good judgment - if the equipment feels hot to the touch, it's probably not safe or fun to play on.

• Don't wear clothes with drawstrings or other strings at the playground. Drawstrings, purses, and necklaces could get caught on equipment and accidentally strangle a child.

• Wear sunscreen when playing outside even on cloudy days so that you don't get sunburned.

Top 10 Checklist for Playground Safety

1. Surfaces around playground equipment should be filled with at least 12 inches of loose fill, such as wood chips, mulch, sand or pea gravel.

2. Most stationary equipment should have at least a 6-foot use zone in all directions.

3. Any openings that can trap children (in guardrails or between ladder rungs) should be less than 3.5 inches apart or more than 9 inches.

4. Guardrails should surround all elevated platforms and should be at least 29 inches high for preschool-age children and 38 inches high for school-age children.

5. Look for exposed concrete footings, tree roots or rocks that could trip children.

6. Check for sharp edges and dangerous hardware, like open "S" hooks or protruding bolts.

7. Make sure your child plays on age-appropriate equipment.

8. Playgrounds should be maintained regularly. Report any problems.

9. Remove hoods or drawstrings that can get caught on equipment.

10. Supervise children while they play.

Play is an important part of your child's physical, social, intellectual, and emotional development. If you keep these safety tips in mind, you're on your way to making sure your child's play is as safe as possible.