Lifestyles
Understanding Some Key Concepts Of the Playground Safety Standards In Australia
While designing a playground anywhere in Australia, it is extremely important to adhere to safety standards. Whether it is in New Wales, Queensland, Victoria, or any other state, a designer needs to be apprised of all the standards and the latest developments that are to be followed for any playground.
With any kind of play environment that is mainly for children, we must ensure all the safety measures according to the Australian Standards. The guidelines given for playgrounds have been developed as a guide for –
- Planning a playground
- Designing
- Installation
- Maintenance
- Operations
Choosing a designer for playground
Reputed playground equipment providers take it upon themselves and ensure that all the playgrounds they design meet your requirement. Moreover, they also ensure that they comply with the Australian playground safety standards for all playgrounds. Therefore, all their projects go through the crucial steps of planning, installation, designing, and manufacturing.
Good playground equipment suppliers sticks to a high level of commitment to remain compliant with the Australian safety standards for playgrounds. Their products not only come with a warranty and guarantee but all their projects are covered by comprehensive insurance policies.
The general safety requirements for a playground in Australia include manufactured features that comprise the playing equipment and any surface material which comes under the standards of soft fall.
Equipment in the playground:
- It includes slides, swings, carousels, seesaws, and climbers
- They need to be made with standard material so that they pose no safety threat to children
- They need to be constructed well enough to bear the Australian weather conditions.
The surface of the playground
Playground surfaces also play an important role in playground safety. Falls are a very common incident that happens in a playground. Hence, you need to pay special attention to the playground surface. The soft fall effect is a major consideration.
- To make your playground more fun, inviting, and a safe place for children, you need to consider each option of the soft-fall effect.
- Soft fall is a crucial consideration since the choice of material used for playground surface acts as a cushion when a child falls on it. This would avert any kind of serious injury or fall accident.
- For this, there are varieties of playground surface options like engineered wood fibre, rubber mulch or loose-fill rubber, PIP or poured in place rubber, turf or synthetic grass, rubber tiles, and playground mats.
Minimum space
It comprises equipment space, falling space, and free space
- The Australian safety standards for playgrounds specify a maximum free height of fall of 3 meters with restrictions of 1.8 meters for small kids under supervision.
- The free space is the space between the equipment that needs to be adequate and does not overlap with each other.
Every designer should also take care of certain other requirements while manufacturing equipment. These matters are potential entrapments in which a body part, hair, or clothes can become trapped.
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