Social interactions are essential at all stages of human development. From childhood to adolescence, newborns need protection, care and supportive interactions from their peers, while children and adolescents need social connections at school and during leisure time. These interactions provide the opportunity to learn skills for dealing with relationships and shaping individual personality development in interaction with others. Participation in social settings manifests itself as a fundamental human need that contributes not only to well-being but also to enhancing quality of life and maintaining health. In contrast, exclusion, prejudice, isolation and loneliness can reduce these positive aspects and cause harm instead (Walter-Klose, 2021).
In this sense, social participation is just as important for people's health as healthy nutrition and exercise. The rainbow model (M. Whitehead / G. Dahlgren, 1991) shows the many determinants of health. Thus, in addition to age, gender and hereditary factors, individual lifestyles, social and community networks, living and working conditions as well as general conditions are decisive. With regard to participation, it is above all social and community networks. For children and young people, clubs and neighbourhood networks are particularly important in addition to daycare centres and schools. Living conditions also include the residential environment, which, depending on its design, either enables or is an obstacle to encounters and participation. Participation is improved when meeting places are available in public and semi-public spaces and are designed to be attractive for all children and young people. For children and young people in particular, spaces for physical activity such as playgrounds and sports fields, but also near-natural areas and traffic areas (play streets) are also places for meeting and interaction.
Against this background, when considering the design of public spaces, areas and opportunities for physical activity and encounters should be considered both in terms of their activity- and relationship-shaping effects, in order to provide a good place for the needs for joyful experiences through physical activity, play and competition. Especially in the leisure sector, which according to Opaschowski (2013) can be seen as an area in which time and activities are self-determined and individually shaped, there is a lot of potential for encounters through joint exercise or learning activities, shared interests or cultural experiences. In this sense, leisure time makes a special contribution to health (Jankowski, Kelch & Walter-Klose, 2021). This is particularly evident in the context of playgrounds, which have positive effects on physical, cognitive and social-emotional development in children (Bento & Dias, 2017) and enable self-directed activities and autonomy. Spaces where children and adolescents can experience nature, which are large natural areas in urban spaces without predefined play facilities, also provide children and adolescents with a variety of opportunities for exercise and encounters. (Friede et al., 2020).
Against this background, people's autonomy should be taken into account, especially in urban planning processes in the leisure sector, by considering the perspective of the users. In this sense, Hübner (2023) calls for participation in urban planning and "a turn towards what young people actually want in the city and not what they should want or need from the adults' point of view" (ibid., 140).
Urban planning offers a variety of possibilities to include the needs of local residents in the design of public space through tried and tested participation methods. Depending on the planning procedure, participation is also legally guaranteed and is carried out either by the responsible municipal offices or professional planning offices. The idea of public participation lies particularly in the consideration of specific needs, but also in the increasing acceptance for change and the consideration of specific local knowledge.
Depending on the specific planning issue, children and young people are also the main addressees in the design of play areas and public spaces (Apel, 2018). "Despite many positive examples in Germany and worldwide, there is still room for improvement in child-oriented urban development. However, as long as this space is designed with children and not just about them, here too the path is the goal, meaning the goal of child-friendly urban development" (Hatzelhoffer, 2018, 6).
In recent years, the importance of participation has also been increasingly discussed in the context of inclusion. Inclusion refers to a process that shapes environmental conditions in a way that enables people in their diversity to continuously participate on an equal basis and with equal rights. With this broad understanding, inclusion focuses on all people who are more likely to experience exclusion and discrimination, e.g. when services do not sufficiently reflect the needs, abilities, values and physical characteristics of individuals or groups of people, or when people are facing prejudices or behavioural uncertainty from others in the context of social norms.
Inclusion often refers to people with disabilities, who are defined by the Social Code IX as people "who have physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments which, in interaction with attitudinal and environmental barriers, are likely to prevent them from participating on an equal basis with others in society for a period of more than six months" (§2, para. 1, Social Code IX). This definition takes into account that physical and social environmental conditions can make it difficult for persons with impairments and illnesses to participate and be included in society.
The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was developed with the aim of improving these circumstances and ratified by the Federal Government in 2008 - and thus the endeavour to achieve inclusion was firmly established in human rights through 50 articles (Federal Government Commissioner for Matters relating to Persons with Disabilities, 2018). In the UNCRPD, the principles of respect for dignity, the prohibition of discrimination and the creation of framework conditions for equal participation and equal opportunities are highlighted as fundamental and specified in the subsequent articles for various areas of life, such as "participation in political and public life" (Article 29) or "participation in cultural life and in recreation, leisure and sport" (Article 30). The state's actions must comply with these conditions and ensure, for example, that "children with disabilities can participate on an equal basis with other children in play, recreation, leisure and sports activities, including in the school sector" (Article 30, 5d).
Regarding the topic of designing inclusive spaces for encounter and physical activity, there are thus two perspectives in the context of designing public spaces, which will be briefly outlined below using the example of planning and designing playgrounds.
First Perspective: Designing inclusive participation methods
Participation in public space planning and design processes can be very diverse and can themselves be full of barriers. Even if general principles of inclusive participation methods can be implemented under the keyword of low-threshold, it is significant that those responsible for the process are diversity-sensitive in order to be able to react to a specific situation. "In the first step, an awareness of the diversity of the target groups must be created in order to be able to recognise and remove barriers" (Städtetag Baden-Württeberg o.J., 17). In order to be able to identify specific situations and needs in the relevant planning area, planners are not left to themselves: "The neighbourhood residents and the local institutions, such as churches, associations and enterprises, are necessary to make the planners aware of the barriers" (ibid.).
In order to develop context-specific participation formats, the work of planners can be supported by methods, attitudes and experiences from other disciplines. For example, the consistent formulation of invitations and information material in easy language, translation into sign language at events and addressing people living in special types of residence (e.g. in a residential facility for people with disabilities) can be enriched by knowledge and attitudes from special needs education, for example, and forms of communication at eye level.
Within the framework of a feasibility study conducted at the University of Applied Sciences for Health, the importance of a facilitator who adopts an inclusive attitude and is sensitive to the individual strengths and needs of all participants could also be identified for an inclusive design of participation formats with a view to people with so-called mental disabilities. In this way, in addition to ensuring accessibility and the use of target group-adapted and simple language, self-determination and co-determination can be supported and conducive team processes can be steered. The provision of visualisations, the use of feedback cards for feedback, as well as working with small groups were also mentioned as helpful. A schedule with short concentration phases and sufficient break times is also supportive. Furthermore, support needs (easy language, assistance, interpreting services and restrictions in the food offered) should be asked for before the event and feedback on further needs should be obtained after each participation meeting (Walter-Klose, Brüggemann & Köckler, submitted). In addition, digital applications can be used which offer the possibility to reduce barriers in participation through image and language support. Spatial situations can be represented with the support of (digital) photos or digital maps and discussed, for example, with the help of the photo-voice method (Köckler & Simon 2020).
Overall, it must be stated in this context that due to the strong segmentation of our society and the life - especially of people with disabilities in special worlds - experiences and social practices in the interaction of people with and people without disabilities are lacking. A practice of inclusive encounters in schools and in public spaces can counteract this issue.
Second Perspective: Designing inclusive spaces for physical activity and encounter using the example of a playground design
For the design of inclusive playgrounds as municipal spaces for encounters and physical activity that provide all children with an equally valuable space for use and experience, on the one hand the competences of children with impairments need to be taken into account and on the other hand reflections on the question of how social togetherness can be designed on the playground to allow encounters and avoid exclusion. Against the background of this perspective, the following elements should be considered in the context of an inclusive planning process:
The planning process should be based on an openness and attitude towards children with impairments, according to which all people are to be regarded as equal and of equal value and that each person can make an important contribution to the community with their potentials and resources. Children with impairments are first and foremost children - and just as individual as children without impairments. This perspective and basic attitude should also be visible on a playground, e.g. by showing children with impairments together with children without impairments and refraining from emphasising special features according to the motto: This playground equipment can only be used by children with impairments.
This attitude is also expressed in a second requirement, in which, in addition to the participation already described in the planning processes, continuous feedback processes are also established and the satisfaction and, in particular, the adaptation of the services to the needs of the users are reflected. Inclusion always requires a participatory reflection process to discover barriers and difficulties in the context of disability. In practice, this can be done, for example, through a digital feedback structure by placing a QR code on a board that links to an (accessible) website where photos of problems or feedback on suggestions for improvement can be collected and made available to those responsible at the local level (e.g. Department of Horticulture/Civil Engineering, Inclusion Officer).
In addition to the perspective of user reflection, networking with other supporting systems from the field of inclusion as well as special education is recommended. In addition to people who have already successfully implemented inclusive offers, voluntary and professional actors (e.g. from special needs education and inclusive institutions) can provide helpful impulses for the planning, reflection and further development of the offer. Scientific expertise on inclusive playground construction and possible playground equipment can also be included (e.g. Stanton-Chapman, & Schmidt, 2019a, b; Woolley et al., 2005).
The last aspect concerns the design of the offer with its structures and processes, taking into account target group-specific needs as well as the perspective of successful social interaction. On the one hand, this includes enabling accessibility and providing equal use of the services. A barrier-free design should be mentioned here, as well as explanations with pictograms and simple language and the design according to the principles of universal design. The latter is an approach in which play offers are designed in a way that they can be used by many people, allow flexibility, and can be used easily and intuitively. Stanton-Chapman and Schmidt (2017, 2019a) describe such a playground where play areas for infants and toddlers are provided alongside musical instruments, a sensory maze, a hill with metal slides and tunnels, a climbing and slide tower, a rope slide and swings. Areas are also always planned to allow caregivers the opportunity to stand in close proximity, as well as spaces that allow for retreat and care. This includes free toilets suitable for disabled persons with nappy-changing facilities also for children and young people. Overall, the aim is to ensure that the offers address diverse and different competences so that every child is able to play.
At the same time, the social dimension must not be neglected so that children have the opportunity to play together. In addition to offers that can be used by more than one person at the same time, communication boards would be recommended, where children can communicate with pictures instead of words (e.g. https://www.kommunikationstafel.ch/spielplatztafeln).
Conclusion
Designing inclusive public spaces is both important and affordable. To ensure that the design and subsequent use is successful, it is important to involve different groups in an effective way. To achieve this, it is important that all those who are responsible are open-minded. Insights from inclusion, as gathered in special education, need to be applied to urban planning.
Literature
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