18.02.2019 - Ausgabe: 1/2019

Making school playgrounds fit for purpose – problems and practical advice

Prof. Dr. Robin Kähler (Chair of the German IAKS)

In the 2018 issue 1 of Playground@Landscape, the topic of school playgrounds as exercise environments was extensively dealt with. The emphasis was on how these could be used to promote exercise and educational aspects and the corresponding design concepts that could be used to make these areas suitable for these purposes. It was pointed out that although the exterior facilities of schools are currently largely overlooked, these could potentially be highly beneficial when it comes to encouraging physical activity by pupils during their breaks. Even outside school hours, they represent open spaces that can be used by children and young people living in the vicinity, particularly in heavily build-up urban environments where such space is at a premium. At the same time, the schools themselves that are responsible for providing the necessary exercise-related infrastructure and for supervision seem to have widely differing opinions in connection with this topic. The same applies to local authorities whose remit is the construction side of things. Despite the fact that most exhibit a positive attitude towards the concept, there is still tangible reluctance and some hesitation when it comes to actually upgrading school playgrounds and even making these available for extramural use. Here it is not the financial aspects that seem to represent the main handicap. In this article, I consider the various pros and cons and consider the concept from the point of view of the schools and local authorities. I can draw on the experience that I have gained working in collaboration with local authorities on sport promotion projects.

 

Making school playgrounds fit for purpose – the arguments in favour

At first glance, it would appear that current attitudes would be generally supportive. Urban planners are increasingly coming to recognise that there is a significant lack of free space that can be used for sport, play and exercise, particularly in densely populated areas. Building projects have in many cases resulted in the disappearance of open and green spaces that were formerly used by families, children and young people for physical recreation. The upgrading of playgrounds would help offset the loss of such open spaces on which residential and commercial structures, roads and urban infrastructure are built as they would provide surrogate room.

Another factor is the promotion of sport-related activities. In their leisure time, children and young people want to skate, cycle, climb, play football etc. - in other words, indulge in informal types of physical activities that they can organise themselves and that they are not required to join clubs to enjoy. Almost all local authorities have the aspiration of fostering such activities among their young citizens through their social and health policies. This would imply that the idea of providing at least limited access to school playgrounds for young people in the vicinity should meet with official approval. It is certainly the case that the concept is favoured by the personnel who work for environmental, social, youth and urban planning bureaus and who are already familiar with the concept of using public spaces as non-standardised exercise spaces using various design approaches.

Among the governmental authorities, however, the idea of providing access for educational/exercise purposes to school playgrounds is lower down the agenda as decisions relating to teaching and educational policy are left to the specialised educationalists. This means that a local authority will not of itself decide to do anything to improve an existing playground unless the relevant school itself starts the ball rolling by soliciting the required upgrade. The two administrative structures - education (school) and construction (local authority) - are totally separate in terms of their accountability. However, should a school decide it requires enhancement of its playground facilities (here in Germany particularly because of the introduction of whole-day schooling), it can assume its local authority and its policies will be generally in favour of such supplementation of its exercise infrastructure. Primary schools and other types of schools that have amalgamated to establish what is in effect a campus will have a particular interest in converting larger outdoor areas into attractive installations.

At the same time, even if schools, authorities and policies are open to the concept, this is only the prerequisite for actual implementation and when it comes to this factor, an analysis of the associated problems becomes essential.

 

...and the arguments against

Various problems have been expressed with regard to the notions of restructuring school playgrounds and making them more accessible. Local authorities see potential difficulties in the form of possible complaints by local residents because of increased noise levels caused by playing children, vandalism, increased requirement for maintenance, increased procurement costs, lack of space for the storage of equipment, misuse of playgrounds by drug dealers, insufficient control of activities and public safety obligations that are practically unmanageable. And schools add to this list of problems with unwillingness on the part of the teaching staff to undertake additional supervisory activities, rampaging and fighting children would be at increased risk of injury, the lack of sufficient parking space to also accommodate teachers' cars, resistance on the part of school maintenance personnel and lack of money to purchase equipment. These are genuine problems that need to be considered and resolved. They need to be taken seriously as they can all too easily be perceived as decisive, knock-down arguments - but what is the best way of countering them? This requires a shrewd approach to sport and exercise policy planning, prudent practical organisation of how facilities are used and consultation with everyone involved. In the following, I consider the various issues and offer proposals for how school playgrounds can be made 'fit for purpose'.

 

Clarify situations and resolve problems

Robust, long term solutions that are endorsed by all parties are required to the 'hard' problems that so worry local authorities, neighbours, teachers and policy-makers. In the case of open air playgrounds, the possibility of complaints about noise by those living nearby cannot simply be ignored. Unless some form of compromise can be reached with residents, a corresponding project remains little more than wishful thinking. One possible way to resolve a related deadlock would be to introduce time-limited, regulated and monitored opening of a facility for use outside school hours, assuming that public interest in this case (possibly backed by a court decision) would be considered to override the rights of residents to peace and quiet. Figure XXX shows how the Greater London Authority has approached this problem in one of its heavily populated districts. The playground is enclosed by a fence, is monitored and only open for public use at certain times of day; it is expensive to operate because of the fencing and monitoring, but the concept avoids conflicts arising between different interest groups and also prevents vandalism.

Another such successful project is the playground of the Klaraschule in Esslingen, Germany (see Fig. XX). It is completely open and offers extensive space for the various creative activities of the pupils and is also suitable for use by young and older children. Others who feel like lingering here for a while are also catered for. The open and inviting design of the playground with its trees and shrubs has apparently contributed to a high level of acceptance among local residents. Such spatial integration of a playground in the residential environment by means of the provision of paths, seating options, trees etc. as central design concepts is an expedient alternative to the otherwise treeless, empty, asphalt-surfaced spaces that commonly serve as school playgrounds and this is something that would be advisable to take into account when designing new schools with sufficiently large playgrounds. The pupils themselves have no problems with such open space playgrounds in general even if as in Fig. XXX, which shows a school playground in Brussels, it is not easy to play football there. More important to them is the fact that they can play freely without disturbance. Happy pupils are less likely to initiate conflicts, making supervision much easier. As the risk of injury sinks as pupils become more physical adept, school boards should look on the idea of ensuring that playgrounds encourage exercise favourably from both the insurance point of view and that of their responsibility for the well-being of the children.

Of course, the risk of the introduction of litter and even glass splinters is a major problem. It would always be necessary to ensure that a playground is completely clean before the start of school. At the same time, it is never possible to completely prevent fouling; but by providing maintenance staff with additional time (and pay) and amicable but clear communication with dog owners, pupils and parents it should be possible to reduce the chances of conflict. Appropriate indirect control over school playgrounds open to the public can be achieved by providing lighting during evening hours and cooperation with sports clubs and other such organisations and encouraging them to hold courses there. The better the quality of facilities provided, the lower the chance that vandalism will occur.

The example of the Alexander primary school in Vechta (Fig. XXX) demonstrates one way in which the problem of where to store equipment can be resolved. Working in cooperation with its parents' association, the school has itself constructed a wooden tool shed in the playground. In it are stored and from it are issued all sorts of play and games equipment for use during breaks and afternoon activities. In return for a deposit, the children themselves lend out the gear during breaks and in the afternoons. They thus learn how to assume responsibility, come to appreciate the value of equipment and discover what it is like to assume official duties; all this contributes to their education.

Considerable difficulties can arise when a playground is used to provide additional parking space for teachers. Room to park cars is limited in larger urban environments. For many teachers, use of public transport is not a viable alternative and we must bear in mind that there is a lack of people willing to work in the profession. A compromise solution has been found by the Karl-Friedrich-Gymnasium secondary school in Mannheim, in that it has decided to divide up its playground (Fig. XX). The teachers have been provided with a separate, secure car park on the now downsized playground while the pupils have a redesigned play area on the still considerable remaining space. If it becomes necessary for a school to provide containers on a playground as temporary classrooms, the remaining open space available needs to be made as attractive as possible for pupils.

 

Design suggestions for use by schools and local authorities

The design of a school playground is a comprehensive task involving all municipal agencies as schools represent an aspect embedded in urban, free space, sport and educational planning. Particularly when it is to be used in the afternoons by pupils attending all-day schooling and to be made available for non-school use, the relationship with the residential surroundings and the wants of local children and young people need to be taken into account. In addition, every school needs to consult with its board, local authority, district groups, teachers, local residents, clubs, pupils, parents and policy-makers in order find an appropriate plan for the design of its playground. This and how the playground is to be used will be determined by the type of school (in other words, the age of children who will be using it), the educational approach used by the school and its curriculum assuming that the playground is also be used for compulsory sport lessons. Primary school playgrounds are predominantly exercise and play spaces while pupils at secondary level schools will be more interested in games and organised sport-based activities - but here fewer pupils seem to be active during breaks. They usually only use the standard sport facilities provided by the school during lessons. How should a school playground be designed to promote more sport and physical exercise?

 

Playground design and operation from a school perspective

The promotion of sport at school and concepts for providing for pupils' development are linked aspects that essentially determine how playgrounds should be designed. The activities that need to be provided for on playgrounds for primary schools and the younger pupils at the secondary level are running, jumping (high jump and long jump), throwing (including shot-putting), games (including ball games), balancing, dangling, skating and sliding in as many variations as possible. A positive aspect is the fact that pupils will tend to 'reshape' an existing playground to suit their own exercise needs and will 'play' with it - in other words, they will allow themselves to be inspired by it to undertake their own activities.

There are five different types of space, that in terms of their capacity to accommodate the corresponding activities, can be summarised as follows:

• Spaces for exercise (with playground facilities, equipment, skating areas, etc.)
• Spaces not dedicated to a particular activity (outdoor areas, grassed areas, etc.)
• Spaces for interaction with others (with seating, forecourts, net swings, climbing frames, etc.)
• Spaces for sensory activities (e.g. balancing equipment, barefoot paths)
• Learning spaces (e.g. jump sport facilities, running tracks, beach complexes = learning during sport)

Schools thus first need to determine what importance they wish to assign to each of these types of spaces and how much room should be provided for each. The basic educational concept would thus be dealt with. When it comes to actual implementation of a project, the following factors will have to be considered.

Different age and play groups will require separate spaces for their activities. In order to avoid clashes between these, formal demarcations will need to be provided (by means of landscaping, provision of hedging, trees, different surfacings and colourations, play equipment, etc.) The provision of themed island zones with intermediate spaces for differing activities can form the underlying concept on which a general approach to the design of school outdoor areas can be based. Natural elements (trees, hedging, bushes) should also be included as components of an exercise space. Discourse (during lessons, conversations between pupils during breaks in various groups) is a major feature of what children encounter at school. Age-appropriate seating will facilitate communication (forecourts, seat blocks, tree trunks, seats around circular tables, landscaping). Also advisable is the provision of open space for free play not dedicated to a particular activity (grassed and non-fenced areas). Pupils always like to test themselves and reinterpret the space provided for them. Hence, spaces that offer such potential should be provided, that are versatile and appeal to as many of the senses of the children as possible (less-standardised sports fields, multifunctional equipment, landscaping with use of different materials for surfacing or several small areas with different forms of flooring, surfacing and colouration). As trends in exercise develop and change, the exercise behaviour of pupils will also undergo transformations. This means that playgrounds need to be able to accommodate such changes (limited equipment, no non-robust special surfacings, no sport field demarcations on surfacings).

It is also desirable from an educational point of view that the children are able to perceive the playground as their 'own' particular space. They will thus treat the facility that has been temporarily made available for their use with care and consideration. And this awareness of the value of the amenity can be further promoted by consultation from the planning to implementation stage of a school playground with everyone involved: the school board, the teachers, the pupils, the maintenance staff, the parents' association, those responsible for educational, sport and youth policies, local youth groups, the local authority and local residents. The rules for use, maintenance and supervision of a playground should also be agreed in dialogue with all parties and - if possible - the pupils should be involved in monitoring compliance with these. The basic idea behind this is to inculcate consideration for the future. The children and young people need to be made aware that their school playground is in effect only being 'loaned' to them for their use for the time being and that it needs to be preserved for the benefit of future generations of school children. This educational aspect is of particular relevance in today's world, where respect for other people and things seems to be in decline.

Images Prof. Dr. Robin Kähler