Playground Safety Coordinator's Program

Filed under Risk Management on Tuesday, September 12, 2006 by Author: James Parker.

Playground Safety Coordinator's Program

The purpose of a playground is to develop both social and basic motor skills within young children. A playground usually includes some type of equipment and this equipment can be extremely varied from playground to playground and even within a single playground. There can be a great diversity of equipment.

Playgrounds are a basic experience of every child. They should be safe places for children to enjoy. All of us have memories of our experiences as a child in parks and at school. The District wants safe experiences for all children on all playgrounds.

The safety of each individual piece of playground equipment as well as the layout of the entire play area should be considered when evaluating a playground for safety. The District evaluates the layout of each school’s playground. It is the responsibility of each Playground Safety Coordinator to inspect playground equipment for safety.

All playgrounds present some challenge and children can be expected to use equipment in unintended and unanticipated ways. Therefore, adult supervision is required during school hours when children are on District playgrounds. Unfortunately, more than 200,000 children are treated in U.S. hospital emergency rooms each year for injuries associated with playground equipment.

The District will reduce injuries by following the Playground Guidelines, enforcing the District Playground Rules and inspecting equipment daily.

The Superintendent has assigned this responsibility to each elementary school physical education teacher. The Playground Safety Manual details the District’s program.