Building a playground in a small park or city comes with challenges — with space constraints often being the most significant. Is creating a fun and engaging playground with limited space possible? Absolutely! You can rely on some practical strategies and focus on integrating elements that allow big fun in a small space.
Get past space constraints by creating pocket parks. These small city outdoor spaces are often surrounded by commercial buildings and serve specific community segments. The mini public parks enable community members to socialize and kids to have fun. Within the park, you can add play elements like:
You’ll also want to provide plenty of seating for caregivers to relax as they watch kids play. Plus, you’ll make the park more versatile while opening it up for other activities like lunches and picnics.
Since pocket parks have limited space, you’ll have to lean into your creativity by choosing playground equipment that serves many purposes. For example, you can combine structures like climbers with interactive panels or compact play towers with slides. You can also experiment with layout to ensure space is used efficiently.
Creating a playground in a small space comes with some unique challenges. Additionally, when designing your playground, you’ll want to consider the needs of community members to ensure they will experience the benefits and impact of urban parks. Here are some strategies to achieve these goals.
Play is essential for kids, and you want kids of all abilities to feel included at your playground. Inclusive playgrounds are environments where kids of all ages and abilities can play and feel welcomed and comfortable.
In inclusive play environments, developers should consider all kids’ abilities and go beyond Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) standards. Consider these eight principles of inclusive play:
Inclusion is essential in any playground, even those built in a small space — remember, you might be creating the only play space in the area. The park has to meet the needs of the community.
Designing diverse playground equipment and structures should be at the forefront and should be a design goal. Since the park will serve many kids, there should be play equipment for different age groups and abilities.
The greatest challenge that small parks present is space. Thus, you can invest in structures that allow kids to participate in fun activities without using up all of the horizontal space.
Vertical equipment provides excellent opportunities for kids to engage in elevated play. This equipment encourages safe risk-taking and allows kids to develop essential climbing skills. Some vertical equipment you can incorporate are rope structures, climbing walls or vertical play panels. Other examples of vertical space play ideas are those with overhead play or wall-mounted elements. Use elements like overhead climbers, interactive games and monkey bars.
One way to combat the space challenge with urban park design involves investing in multipurpose playground equipment. With freestanding pieces, you can better ensure every user can enjoy the park while making the most of the available space. Use the freestanding pieces to unite the park while adhering to your limited space.
The benefit of using freestanding pieces of several sizes and shapes is that they give kids of all ages hours of playtime. Kids can try out the different equipment, exploring each to maximize their playtime.
Technology is also helpful for making a playground more engaging, especially when you have limited space. With electronic outdoor playground equipment, you can create a space kids will love.
Creating a park should be a collaborative effort. Urban parks are built for the community, so you definitely want to involve community members to make a play space that’s engaging for kids and meets community needs.
Focus on collaborating with schools, existing parks and community members to better understand their needs. You might meet with community members one-on-one, allow groups to sit in on planning meetings or gain their feedback via a survey. Community involvement during planning ensures you meet the project’s goals and helps to avoid future issues.
When building a park, it’s important to consider how the community will maintain it. People often neglect maintenance planning, but it’s key to prolonging the life of the playground. As you’re designing, create a park maintenance guide that lists the tasks necessary to keep the playground functional, safe and appealing. You can also choose materials that require little maintenance.
Sustainability should be a priority during the building process. Start by choosing responsibly sourced materials that are environmentally friendly. Refrain from purchasing cheaply made equipment and structures — these might save costs, but it’ll cost you more when you need to replace the items. The materials might also not be as durable, which can pose a risk to the kids using the playground. Thus, invest in quality materials with a warranty. The durable materials also assist in eliminating waste, as they won’t end up in landfills soon. Prioritizing material quality also means kids will enjoy the playground much longer.
You can also incorporate nature-inspired playground equipment to help kids make positive connections between the environment and fun. As they play, it’ll encourage them to love nature. For children, fun in nature benefits their cognitive, social and physical development as they learn to appreciate all of nature’s gifts.
Creating an urban park provides kids with a fun space and makes the area appealing to visitors. The right equipment enables you to overcome the space issue while realizing your big idea.
For all your pocket playground equipment needs, turn to Playworld. We’re passionate about providing equipment that allows you to design an engaging space kids will love. Request a quote today to learn more about our age-inclusive playground equipment.