YOUR FORUM FOR PLAY, SPORTS UND LEISURE AREAS
Hamburg now boasts an inclusive playground. On the face of it, this doesn't seem like such earth-shattering news. After all, Hamburg is a metropolis with over 1.8 million residents and which hosts more than 6 million tourists annually. Furthermore, over a decade ago Germany signed the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which enshrines inclusion as a human right.
Inclusion is a modern buzz word with positive connotations for those who do not experience it in their immediate environment. And with negative connotations for those whose daily experience is that Germany is largely not inclusive but hitherto has simply spoken a great deal about the concept.
Inclusion derives from the Latin verb includere, meaning to enclose. As a modern-day concept it stands for the acceptance of every person, regardless of sex, age, or origin, of religious confession or education and of any disabilities or other individual characteristics. "Being different" should not just be tolerated but regarded as "normal".
Our society's task is to create structures in all areas of life that enable all its members to move freely within it. The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which enshrines inclusion as a human right, has existed for ten years. However, there remains a great deal of work to be done.
And this is what makes the news about an inclusive playground in Hamburg so remarkable. For this playground in the city centre would not have been created without the vision of a number of mothers who raised funds and garnered support from the local authority and politicians. The first public inclusive playground in Hamburg was created on the initiative of the Children's Friends Association of the Markusstraße Day Nursery and in conjunction with the district office of Hamburg-Mitte.
At the heart of Hamburg's Neustadt district, amid the tourist hordes and in the vicinity of the Reeperbahn, shopping streets and office buildings – alongside a primary school and a day nursery and close by another day nursery and a district school there has long been a playground. Locals, children and even the press refer to it as the Uncle Rudi. The playground is named after its last attendant Uncle Rudi. He was responsible for the cleanliness of the facility and the welfare of the children who would come along unaccompanied by their parents. However, more than thirty years have now passed since Uncle Rudi worked in the playground.
The "Rudi" is a large undeveloped site with mature, shady trees – a natural oasis in the heart of the metropolis of Hamburg. A meeting place for the local community. Everyone who could walk in the Neustadt district - or who was just learning to - had been coming along to play for decades. The "Uncle Rudi" was a meeting place where local families gathered after nursery, school and work. Unfortunately, the park became increasingly run down, with much of the play equipment broken or barely usable. And it's neglected state attracted other people: the playground became a place where fighting dogs were trained, drugs and alcohol were consumed and a public convenience.
There are around 800 children up to the age of ten in the primary school and day nurseries around the playground and many families were no longer prepared to accept its dilapidated condition and resolved to take action. Most people in the inner city, unlike the residents of detached suburban houses, have little space and no garden and need to be able to go out with their children. And at the same time, families are reliant on facilities that are close to their homes in the neighbourhood.
Several parents from the neighbouring day nursery showed initiative, raised funds and sought to make the playground attractive again. At the start of the project the directly adjacent Markusstraße day nursery had around 25 children with a variety of disabilities. During the initial deliberations it was noted that children who used wheelchairs were unable either to access the playground or use the equipment due to the sandy surface. Research showed that there was not a single truly inclusive playground anywhere in the entire city.
This situation needed to change.
Over the last few years further funds were raised, backers found, ideas generated and finally a plan presented which the City of Hamburg, as the playground's owner and operator, approved. The Uncle Rudi "A Playground for All" project in Hamburg's Neustadt district is so unique because local people, politicians and the city authorities have worked together to make it truly inclusive. During the planning phase two workshops were staged in which disabled and able-bodied children and their parents took part. And the playground was finally opened last May.
Playgrounds are important social spaces for children and their parents. Therefore, they must be barrier-free and offer equipment that also enables disabled children to actively participate in play. This is an objective enshrined in article 30 section 5 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities: "(…) with a view to enabling persons with disabilities to participate on an equal basis with others in recreational, leisure and sporting activities (…)".
Children in wheelchairs must have the opportunity to move independently, which means safe routes and access to cabins and sandpits need to be provided. Nevertheless it is important to point out that inclusion amounts to more than just providing ramps for accessibility. It is also necessary to take into account the needs of children with such disabilities as sight and hearing impairments, movement disorders and muscle weakness. And in future children with impaired perception and motor skill deficits will also be able to play with the other children in the inclusive playground. The Uncle Rudi playground is intended to be a playground for all. Accordingly, the need for play elements that enable disabled and able-bodied children to play together was taken into account in the planning.
The extreme athlete and wheelchair skater David Lebuser states: "It is not walking that should be regarded as normal but rather the freedom to move and with this freedom the ability to then take part in life."
So what are the distinguishing features of an inclusive playground? The first things that spring to mind are navigability and accessibility. The paths typically have a water-bound surface, and bark mulch is is often used as fall protection in playgrounds in Germany. This requires constant care and follow-up costs are high because it needs to be replaced or replenished. In some areas of the Uncle Rudi playground bark mulch is still used as fall protection. However, wheelchairs, rollators, scooters and pushchairs are difficult to use on bark mulch and ash. But naturally it is significantly cheaper to purchase than, for example, synthetic fall protection. EPDM is very weather-resistant, has high elasticity and is shock-absorbing. It is also a slip resistant surface and no holes develop in it under well-used items of equipment as they do in the sand beneath a slide, for example. As this surface is water-permeable it dries very quickly. It is also sound-insulating, which is certainly an advantage on popular urban playgrounds. Because the designers of the Uncle Rudi playground wanted wheelchair users to also be able to reach the play equipment beyond the paved paths, almost every item is also accessible via an EPDM surface.
In addition, a special colour scheme helps visually impaired children and children with sensory issues to orientate themselves more easily. It is with this in mind that colours with strong contrasts have been selected on the Uncle Rudi playground. The path boundaries are therefore formed with very light kerbs and the paths are almost black. The choice of colour for the synthetic fall protection was also made with this consideration in mind. Beige, brown and green - especially in combination - are not very well perceived by people with a visual impairment. The planners of the Uncle Rudi playground sought advice and opted for the combination of blue and yellow (mango).
In the bird's nest swing all children really are able to play together. A conscious decision was taken not to include a wheelchair swing because the sensation of swinging whilst fastened into a wheelchair is less intense than when lying down in a nest swing. However, the playground does have a wheelchair-accessible roundabout, a multi-purpose slide hill and a wheelchair-accessible table tennis table. The sand play area can be approached in a wheelchair and seating supports have also been provided for children who may not be able to sit unassisted. The carefully considered offer from a motor standpoint is rounded off with a climbing forest for all ages and a colourful trampoline.
An especially unique play feature is the play fence. At one of the workshops during the planning phase, where the needs and wishes of children with and without disabilities were explored and tested, individual elements of an ugly existing fence were removed and other elements were covered with cloths. This play feature was subsequently right at the top of the children's list of priorities. So the idea of a new play fence arose, which was especially planned and produced for the Uncle Rudi playground. This colourful fence includes two counters at different heights to meet the needs of children of different sizes with and without wheelchairs. Here children sell ice cream made from sand and chips made from sticks. There are several options for entry - a pipe, two openings of different sizes and a proper entrance. And some kids are also sure to find the way over the fence. A prison, a flat or a restaurant? Here everything is possible!
The Rudi has been a big hit since it opened and has become a place where everyone can enjoy themselves again. Everyone. Together. And there is one thing that all involved in its creation have learnt: that initiative and cooperation pay off.
