Choosing the right equipment for your local park

Regular readers will know of the work I have done with Willand Parish Council to improve our village parks. This is an ongoing process that started five years ago. We are gradually upgrading or adding play equipment and facilities in our village.

Having a vision

Willand is a large village in Devon with a population of about 4,000 people. It has nine parks, four tennis courts, a football club, a Primary School with its own field and playgrounds and a large village hall.

My observations of the park equipment a few years ago was that the under- 5s were well serviced, but there was not much if anything for 6-11-year-olds and nothing for teenagers and adults except 4 sets of football goalposts. The design of the park equipment was at the mercy of housing developers who would always opt for the bare minimum.

Knowing that children (and adults) like to climb, explore, hang, jump and generally get into scrapes if given the opportunity I approached the Parish Council about upgrading its equipment. What I didn’t want them to do was invest in a set of ‘outdoor gym equipment’ the type of thing that sounds like a good idea, but ends up being an expensive plastic eyesore that is a repository for bird droppings.

The ‘one purpose only’ equipment such as a leg press or shoulder press machines, leave no opportunity for creativity or play. They are horrible inside gyms so why try to replicate them outdoors?

(N.B. the machine-driven craze was started in the 1970s by bodybuilders looking to isolate individual muscles. This then was deemed ‘safe’ by gym owners because there was little skill involved. Little skill= little fun+ boredom. By encouraging gym users to sit and lie down on equipment, the machines removed any need to balance or retain ‘core-strength’. )

And yet, many councils invest in this.

Not Willand.

I was well received by our Parish Council, who are hard-working, prudent and thorough in liaising with other authorities and companies that think they can fleece the public sector.

Vibrant, living spaces

Fast forward a few years and the two parks that our PC now own are well equipped with equipment and very well used. The addition of picnic table and extra benches came to my mind after reading Christopher Alexander’s ‘A pattern language’ and my observations that parents were getting tired of standing before their children were tired of playing.

The parents and elderly residents now have somewhere to rest and chat, read their paper or even have a picnic.

During the lockdown, our nine parks were even more important for the physical and mental well being of all our residents.

Everything is within walking distance and is free to use. Young, old, rich, poor, working, furloughed, sacked or retired: by investing in our community facilities with our local tax, everyone benefits.

Ideas on how to use the equipment

I have filmed five videos that show some simple ways to use various pieces of equipment. My friend Alex Grinter who is an expert Parkour coach guest stars and shows much more interesting and advanced ways to use the equipment.

Because the equipment reflects the natural explorative ideas of human beings, there are multiple ways to use each piece. It is hard to get bored. People of all ages can use them (N.B. I am 51 years-old in these videos and Alex is 28.): if they are tall enough to reach them. They can just adjust the type of exercise they perform.

Here are the five videos:

Summary

The message to councils and local authorities is: choose your equipment wisely.

Don’t follow the latest fads, make it accessible to all, including rest areas and do a little in each space. Don’t buy what the playground suppliers tell you is ‘popular’: consult someone who knows about exercise and play for the different age groups.

Children are micromanaged for much of their lives, putting simple but robust and varied equipment into playgrounds allows them to explore, play and be creative. As well as improving their health.

It’s a lot cheaper than trying to fix them once they are old, obese or have chronic health problems.