Playing it Safe

Playing it Safe

Growing children love having fun. The problem is that they get bored easily. A lot of parents recognise then, that it’s a good idea for kids to be able to go out and run around for half an hour in a playground, because it allows them to burn off some of that excess energy that might otherwise have been used to destroy your living room and pull off the dog’s tail.

What better environment than the local playground or the park for children to go and enjoy themselves running, climbing and jumping over apparatus designed for that purpose, rather than that new £500 sofa? While playgrounds provide a great source of entertainment for children, as adults it is important to be aware of the health and safety issues that can arise so that you can protect your children.

The problem of course is striking a balance between protecting your children and allowing them to go out and express themselves and be creative. You can make sure that the playground is a safe environment by following a few simple rules:

1) Give the equipment and the grounds of the playground a quick scan beforehand to check for any unsafe equipment, broken glass or jagged metal.
2) Make sure your child is supervised at all times by an adult.
3) Teach your children how to play safely and responsibly, using equipment properly. If a swing is designed for one person then it might not be able to hold three children on it at the same time.
4) Report any problems with the playground to the local council or other organisation responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of the playground.

If you keep to these basics then this should allow your children to get maximum pleasure out of that trip to the playground, with minimum risk of injury involved, and minimum worry for yourselves as a parent.