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home / 世界杯决赛2022

does your neighbourhood playground promote active play for the whole family?

innovative playgrounds over a large area encourage parent participation and get the whole family more active, a comparison study shows.

by jill barker
published jan 29, 2023
read time 4 minute read
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read time 4 minute read
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playgrounds have traditionally been built with children in mind, but that’s changing. today’s newest playgrounds are purposely designed to encourage play among kids and adults. instead of parents or caregivers watching from a bench, the idea is to build playgrounds that entice the whole family to be active, including older children and grandparents.
innovative playgrounds are stretched over a large footprint. gone is the familiar layout of one or two static structures for climbing and sliding along with a few swings. instead, you’ll find a variety of structures of different heights and surfaces, nature areas designed for play, loose or movable equipment that lend themselves to more varied and creative movement as well as structures sized to accommodate cooperative play between younger and older siblings, their peers and parents and grandparents.
well-designed outdoor playgrounds help children accumulate the recommended 60 minutes per day of moderate to vigorous physical activity, of which only about 28 per cent of canadian children currently achieve. and the more adults play with their kids, the more likely they are to add exercise minutes to their own weekly tally.
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a trio of u.s. researchers documented the effect of innovative playgrounds on physical activity. their study compared eight innovative playgrounds in london, england, to eight similar-sized traditional playgrounds in the united states to determine not only who was visiting the parks, but also how the play structures within the park were being used.
the research team also compared the patterns of use in eight large one-acre parks located in central london to eight smaller parks (less than an acre) in high-population centres in the u.s. (new york, san francisco and los angeles). and to ensure the appropriate representation, parks in ethnically and socio-economically diverse neighbourhoods were included.
usage patterns were determined through observation and video technology, with observers collecting data three times a day on two weekdays and two weekends, for a total of 12 observation periods. the results revealed a significant difference not only in who used the parks, but also in the number of people who visited.
“the number of playground visit hours was 58-per-cent higher in london,” the researchers stated. “the matched london playgrounds had 37.8-per-cent more children and 129-per-cent more adults, who were respectively engaging in 90-per-cent and 116-per-cent more moderate to vigorous activity than children and adults in similar-sized american playgrounds.”
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there was also a striking difference in how the inner-city parks in london were used, with the percentage of adult visitors in the london playgrounds more than double the number observed in u.s. inner city playgrounds — even when controlling for size. and like the other parks, children, teens and adults were more likely to engage in moderate to vigorous intensity physical activity in the london urban parks than in the smaller and more traditionally built parks in the large u.s cities.
admittedly, some of the difference in usage patterns can be attributed to characteristics beyond the design and type of equipment, but it opens up a discussion around whether the current design of our local parks is best serving canadians of all ages.
“playgrounds, traditionally thought of as serving only children, are actually a rich community resource that can serve multiple age ranges, if they are designed to support the wants and needs of all ages,” the researchers wrote.
the london preference for an open-concept mix of playground and park space, that allows families to cycle in and out of active play, is quite different from the u.s. habit of fencing in their playgrounds or segregating them by age. so, too, is the diversity of equipment in london playgrounds, with most of the innovative parks averaging five more unique features, two more surface types and more water play, loose equipment and seating. they also averaged 43 users during the periods of observation, versus 16 users in the u.s. parks.
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the research team also commented on the inclination of americans to devote more community green space to playing fields rather than playgrounds, which serves fewer people per square metre as well as being geared primarily to athletes versus families looking for more ways to exercise together.
nathan shuster park in côte-st-luc, is a good canadian example of an innovative park. it features a zip line, elevated rope obstacle course, tree house, lots of different types of climbing structures, zones for toddlers and older kids and a strong nature component.
tanya abramovich, associate city manager/urban strategy for côte-st-luc, consulted extensively with professionals and private citizens to make sure the park reflected the needs of the community, a step they take before renovating or building any park in their network of green spaces. the extra effort paid off.
“it’s the most popular of all our parks,” said côte-st-luc mayor mitchell brownstein.
there are several other good examples of canadian parks that have embraced an innovative playground design, including terra nova park in richmond, b.c., dingle playground in halifax and assiniboine park nature playground in winnipeg.
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the idea playgrounds are more than only a set a swings and a climbing structure seems to be catching on, which is good news for families looking for inexpensive ways to have fun and exercise together.

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