Back to School:
Keeping Children Safe on the Playground
September 27, 2011
Robert P. Marinelli, ARM, CPSI, RSSP
Agenda
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Play & Playground History
Playground Injuries
Equipment
Use Zones
Surfacing
Maintenance
Supervision
Liability
Play & Playground History
Importance of Play:
Play is necessary for a broad range of
learning.
Child’s social, emotional, physical and
intellectual development are all related to
and supported by balanced play
experience.
Play & Playground History
• 1821 (Salem, MA): Crude outdoor gymnasium. Idea did
not catch on.
• 1886 (Boston, MA): Outdoor sand gardens were the start
of the playground movement in the U.S.
• 1889 (Boston, MA): First public outdoor gymnasium.
• 1900 (Boston, MA): Columbus Ave Playground
established. Many other U.S. cities are developing
playgrounds, too.
Play & Playground History
• 1905 Thirty-five American cities had developed
supervised playgrounds.
• 1907 Playground Association of America published
recommendations for public playgrounds.
– Essential apparatus for girls of all ages and younger boys
included sand court, four rope swings, one sliding board, two
giant strides, two teeter boards, four sets of ring toss and
continuous supply of balls.
• 1909 Massachusetts law requires towns over 10,000
population to establish community playgrounds.
Play & Playground History
• 1929 National Recreation Association published
guidelines for pre-school and public school
playgrounds.
– Sandbox, small slide, a low climber, six chair swings.
Elementary schools should have 8’ high slide, giant
stride, and balance beam, horizontal bar, horizontal
ladder, six swings on a frame 12 feet high.
• 1931 National Recreations Association
recommends all giant strides be banned.
Giant Stride
Play & Playground History
• 1930s & 40s “Concrete Pipe Era”
• 1950s & 60s “Novelty Era” saw the use of
fiberglass, color, designers, architects.
• 1970s “Modern Era” new play theories, preschool playgrounds became important again.
• 1980s New materials and opportunities for
physically disabled children.
Play & Playground History
• 1981 Consumer Product Safety Commission
(CPSC) establishes guidelines. Handbook for
Public Playground Safety.
• 1993 American Society for Testing and Materials
(ASTM) develops standard for playground
equipment
• Late 90s Some states pass laws adopting CPSC
and/or ASTM.
Playground Injuries
• Over 200,000 emergency room visits per
year resulting from injuries on the
playground.
• What is the most common type of
incident?
Playground Injuries
Common Hazards Discovered
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Pinch, Crush & Shearing
Head Entrapment
Entanglement/Strangulation
Protrusion/Puncture
Wear & Tear
Excessive Heights
Inadequate head impact attenuation of surfacing
materials
Playground Injuries
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Testing for hazards.
Pinch/Crush/Shearing (finger probe)
Head Entrapment (torso/head probe)
Entanglement (fish probe/visual)
Protrusion/Puncture (projection gauge)
Wear & Tear (dime/cc)
Excessive Heights (tape measure)
Head Impact Attenuation (depth gauge)
Equipment
Age Appropriateness
• 2 – 5 Years (pre-school)
• 5-12 Years (school age)
Equipment is manufactured and installed
specifically for these groups.
What about equipment sold as 2 – 12 Years?
Equipment
Major Types of Equipment Include:
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Climbing Equipment (Stationary)
Merry-Go-Rounds
See Saws
Slides
Swings
Trampolines (?)
Stand-alone & Composite equipment
Equipment
Climbers
Includes arch climbers, sliding poles,
chain/net climbers, upper body equipment
(overhead ladders, overhead rings), dome
climbers, parallel bars, balance beams,
cable walks, suspension bridges, spiral
climbers, and linked platforms.
Equipment
Climbers
Preschool (2-5)
• Max height 60”
• Rung spacing 9-12”
School age (5-12)
• Max height 84”
• Rung spacing 9-15”
Equipment
Merry-Go-Rounds
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Most common type of rotating equipment.
Circular/octagonal.
Handgrips or means to hold on.
No crushing/shearing hazards in undercarriage.
Pre-schoolers should be supervised!
Speed of rotation should be limited to 13
ft/second.
Equipment
See Saws
• Not recommended for preschoolers unless
equipped with a spring centering device.
• Increasing popularity of single-user spring
rockers.
• Fulcrum should not present crush or shearing
hazard.
• Handholds should be provided.
• Shock absorbers?
• Maximum angle of 25°
Equipment
Slides
Variety of slides exist including straight
slides, tube slides, spiral slides, roller
slides, and embankment slides.
Slides can be stand alone or part of a
composite piece of equipment.
Equipment
Slides
• Access ladder or stairway (except embankment
slides).
• Straight slide chute angle average no more than
30º and have no span with a slope greater than
50º (H to L ratio less than 0.577).
• Platforms, barriers, guardrails and channeling
devices.
Equipment
Slides
• Exit region of 11” w/slope between 0 and -4º
• Exit height should be between 7” and 15” for slides 48”
or less.
• Exit height should be no greater than 11” for slides
greater than 48”.
• Clearance of 21” along sides of chute.
Equipment
Swings
To-Fro Wings
Tot-Swings
Single Axis Swings
Large Bulky Swings (metal)
ADA Swings
Equipment
Swings
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Located away from other play structures and areas.
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Two seats per bay…max. No limit on the number of bays.
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Distance between swings no less than 24”
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Distance between support and swings no less than 30”
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Distance between underside of seat and surfacing material no less
than 12”.
Equipment
Track slides
• Not recommended for children less than 5 years of age.
• Hand gripping portion between 64” – 78”
• Center to center distance between adjacent tracks
should be a minimum of 48”.
• No pinch, crush, or shearing hazards should be present.
Equipment
Sliding Poles
• Not recommended for pre-school age children.
• Reach (horizontal distance) to pole from platform
should be no greater than 18”.
• Pole should extend at least 60” above the level
of the platform.
• Diameter no greater than 1.9”
• Not located in high-traffic areas
Equipment
Climbing Ropes
• Secured at both ends
• Cannot be looped back to create a loop of
greater than 5 inches (inside perimeter).
Use Zones
• Stationary Equipment (except slides)
6 Feet
• Slides
6 feet on all sides except exit, which is
between 6 and 9 feet, depending on
height of slide.
Use Zones
• To-Fro Swings
2xH (H = distance from pivot to surfacing)
• Tot Swings
• 2xH (H = distance from pivot to top of sitting
surface)
• Single-Axis Swing
H+72” (H= distance from pivot to top of sitting
surface)
Use Zones
• Overlapping of Use Zones
• Stationary Equipment 30” or less in height may
overlap (6 foot distance between pieces)
• Stationary Equipment greater than 30” may
partially overlap (9 foot distance between
pieces)
• Moving equipment – Never Overlap!
• Entire Use Zone should have appropriate
surfacing material.
Surfacing
Loose Fill Surfacing
• Sand
• Gravel
• Woodchips
Unitary Surfacing
• Poured in Place
• Mats
Surfacing
ASTM Standard for head-impact attenuation (ASTM F-1292).
The peak deceleration of the head during impact should
not exceed 200 times the acceleration due to gravity
(200 Gs)
Head Impact Criteria should not exceed a value of 1000.
Tested by using a metal head form dropped on material
and recording the acceleration and time pulse.
Surfacing
Surfacing
Maintenance
Maintenance should be performed
regularly to the extent needed.
What does that mean ???
Maintenance
Audits: performed by CPSI; Usually a one-time
activity or annually.
Low Frequency Inspections: performed by
trained maintenance/public works personnel
(quarterly).
High Frequency Inspections: performed by
custodial or playground supervision employees
(weekly/daily).
Maintenance
Typical Problem Items
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Loose fill degradation.
Loose fill compression or displacement.
Open s-hooks.
Worn hardware.
Exposed bolts.
Cracked, splintered or other conditions of wear.
Tangled swing chains. Swings thrown over top.
Graffiti and vandalism
Animal Debris
Slime Mold
Litter/broken glass
Hypodermic needles
Supervision
• Adults Only
• Pupil:Adult Ratio
– Consider environment
– Consider access
– Consider range of view
• Supervisor Attention
– Chatting
– Eating
– Playing
• Tools
– Whistle
– Two-way radio
• Credibility/Authority
• Training & First Aid
Supervision
What to look for
• Appropriate play
• Strangers on campus
• Bullying
• Imminent Hazards
Liability
• Applicability of CPSC Guidelines and
ASTM Standards in Massachusetts
• Standard of Care
– Equipment
– Maintenance
– Supervision
• Recreational Use Statutes
Things to Remember
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CPSC Publication 325: Public Playground Safety Handbook
ASTM F-1497-05: Performance specs public playgrounds
ASTM F-1292-04: Head impact attenuation
ASTM F-2223-04: Surfacing
ASTM F-1918: Soft play equipment
ASTM F-1951: Accessibility of surfacing materials
ASTM F-2075-04: Specs for engineered wood fiber
• IPEMA go to www.ipema.org for compliance certifications
IPEMA = International Play Equipment Manufacturers Association
• rmarinelli@mma.org