Addressing Disability in Playspaces

Frequently Asked Questions

The National Center on Accessibility offers technical assistance to recreation providers. Below are some of the most frequently asked questions. Please note this is not legal advice, merely suggestions based on the most current information available to provide optimum access for children with disabilities and adult supervisors with disabilities on and through play areas.

Q. Does every element or piece of equipment on the playground need to be accessible?
A. A playground that is accessible and allows for integration is a playground that when viewed in its entirety provides similar opportunities for children of varying abilities. This does not mean that each and every feature of the play event has to be usable by every individual. It means that experiences must be available. For instance, if a playground offers play experiences such as swinging, sliding, and climbing, the same or similar experiences should be provided for all. The opportunity to participate in each play activity provides a quality play experience for each child.

A playground should not just be accessible for children. It should be accessible for adults with disabilities as well. At times, there may be teachers, parents, or even grandparents at the play area who may have disabilities and need to access different elements of the play area should children using the equipment need support, supervision, or first aid.

Most importantly, an accessible play environment allows social integration to take place. Children naturally form playgroups. Inaccessible play areas prohibit children with disabilities from fully participating in the group.

Q. How do I know the changes I make are the ones wanted by the consumers who use the playground?
A. Ask them! It is very important to include consumers throughout the entire planning process. It is important to get parents of children with disabilities and parents with disabilities from the community involved in the planning process.

Q. What if two consumers have different ideas about the plans of a playground?
A. Consumers should be involved throughout the process to provide their suggestions and ideas. Consumers can be excellent resources to catch details that might have been overlooked or to suggest creative approaches/solutions. However, just because a person has a disability does not necessarily mean he or she is an expert on accessibility. Consumers may know their own abilities and what will or will not work for them, but may not know the needs of others with disabilities. Consumers also may not be completely familiar with access standards. For this reason, it is best to get as many people as possible with various disabilities involved. Keep in mind that consumer input is just that, suggestions; the ultimate decision is up to the agency.

Q. What part of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) addresses playgrounds?
A. Title II of the ADA specifies that all state and local government services, programs, and activities must be made accessible. Play areas for public use, such as in a park, are considered programs under the ADA and are required to be accessible. Managers of playgrounds can be held legally responsible for the provision of accessible playground opportunities for children with disabilities. Moreover, under the ADA, after January 26, 1992, all new construction must be built accessible. Please remember the intent of the law is that no person, solely based on a disability, can be denied participation in, or be denied the benefits of, programs, services, or activities.

Privately held businesses providing public accommodations with playgrounds are covered by Title III of the ADA. Playgrounds that you find at fast food restaurants, day care centers, and those indoor playgrounds that you pay admission to use are required under Title III to provide programs and activities, such as playgrounds, that are accessible.

Q. I have changes that need to be made now on my playgrounds, but wouldn’t it be better to wait until the standards are out?
A. The National Center on Accessibility offers technical assistance to recreation providers. Below are some of the most frequently asked questions. Please note this is not legal advice, merely suggestions based on the most current information available to provide optimum access for children with disabilities and adult supervisors with disabilities on and through play areas.

Q. I already have existing equipment that is not accessible; can I just add accessible equipment in a nearby area?
A. The intent of the ADA, just as many other civil rights laws, is to eliminate segregation. It is clear that participation by people with disabilities should be in an integrated setting. Therefore, when equipment is being considered, it should be examined to be sure all children can use it together. One benefit of playgrounds and play, in general, is that it encourages social interactions among children. Some added equipment that is accessible is, of course, better than no accessible equipment at all. However, if there is an opportunity to provide equipment inclusive of the entire play setting, that is encouraged.

Q. If I make changes to make the playground more accessible now and the standards are something different, do I have to make immediate changes again?
A. If you are designing a new playground at this time, you are responsible to use the most current knowledge and information and make decisions based on that information. Facilities constructed prior to developed standards will be evaluated based on the best available information at the time of construction.

Q. What kind of signs do I need on an accessible playground, and where is the best placement?
A. Many facilities, after providing accessibility, place signs on entrances or posts displaying the international symbol of accessibility. In some cases, signs have been placed directly on the accessible equipment itself. Sometimes signs have “accessible playground” added. In general, letting people know that the facility is accessible is all that is necessary. When signs such as the symbol of access are placed on equipment, the signs often trigger unnecessary labeling of the children who use it and discourage integrated use.

Q. I’m not an accessibility specialist. How am I supposed to know how to select equipment and surfaces that meet requirements? Am I safe by selecting products that indicate hey are ADA approved or claim to be accessible?
A. Some manufacturers of playground equipment and surface materials claim in their promotional materials that their products are ADA approved. There is NO such approval. No organization or agency has any authority to give ADA approval for any product or material.

Q. Which should I use, ramps or transfer points, when designing an accessible playground?
A. Some equipment manufacturers are stating that equipment with ramps is the best way to provide accessibility, while others are promoting equipment with transfer points. Several parents of children with disabilities, who have shared their experiences with the NCA, have indicated that some children can use the transfer points while others find ramps more accessible to them. This seems to lead toward a concept of equipment that has incorporated both ramps and transfer points in its design. However, it is important to note that there may be adults with disabilities, such as teachers or parents, who may need access to the equipment, too, especially if first aid or supervision is required.

Q. I have never seen a child who uses a wheelchair using our playground. How can I justify making major changes for just a few children?
A. You may not see children with disabilities using existing playgrounds; however, it’s most likely not because of lack of desire but probably due to barriers preventing them from using the playground. Most people without disabilities can remember countless hours spent playing on playgrounds. This is an opportunity for fun and social interaction that is denied to many children with disabilities. It is estimated that more than 49 million Americans have disabilities. Some of those are children, and some live in your community. These children have the right to play as much as any other children.

Parents and grandparents also supervise their children at playgrounds. If a parent with a disability needed to get to his or her child, the parent would need to be able to access all parts of the area. Efforts toward accessibility will not just benefit people with disabilities. Accessibility also makes it easier for many other people. Universal design, design that is usable by everyone, can aid parents with strollers, grandparents, toddlers, people with temporary disabilities, and many others.

A final consideration to justify the cost is that it is the law to provide the same opportunities for all children regardless of disability.

Q. Safety and accessibility seem to oppose one another. Are there ways to meet both needs?
A. Yes, there are ways to provide safe, accessible, and challenging play environments. This is a new area, and it poses a challenge to all managers, but with creative planning, the challenge can be met. Various documents address both issues by agencies such as the American Society for Testing Materials (ASTM) F1487, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), the National Recreation and Park Association, and NRPA’s National Playground Safety Institute.

Q. It is difficult to find manufacturers that have equipment that will make an integrated playground. Why isn’t there more to choose from?
A. This is a result of supply and demand. The needs and orders of playground managers drive the equipment market. At this point, manufacturers are just beginning to hear access requests. If managers demand that any item considered for purchase meets the needs of children with varying abilities, then manufacturers will respond and make more equipment that is accessible.

Q. How can I get started on a new playground?
A. The first thing to remember is to include user input in your planning process. Don’t randomly go through the equipment catalog picking and choosing. This process has a tendency to lead to the selection of equipment based on appearance rather than by play value and experience. Instead, start with the users to assist in determining what types of experiences would be most beneficial to all users on this playground. From that point, include the vendor in the planning process. Ask the vendor to suggest different types of equipment to meet various types of experiences (i.e., swinging, balancing, climbing, perching, and role-playing). Most playground equipment vendors can design play component blueprints. Ask to see a variety of designs that incorporate the experiences and equipment you have selected for the play area. Also, ask the vendors to describe accessible features and routes of travel.

Q. But how can I make sure the vendor and/or the architect is coming up with an accessible playground design?
A. The burden really falls on the playground manager/owner to not only be able to read the playground design but also to see how it will look before it is actually built. Essentially, you will want to look for a comprehensive design that allows children and adults (if a rescue or assistance is needed) to access the equipment and especially a play component. Once the design is complete, ask the vendor for playground sites they have designed with similar features that you can visit. Visit those sites and bring your potential users along. Be sure to bring an accessibility specialist and a child and an adult who use wheelchairs and/or have other mobility impairments. This can be the real test of whether what seems to be fun, usable, accessible equipment on paper is usable, fun, and accessible in reality.

Equipment

Here are just a few questions you can pose to playground manufacturers when purchasing equipment:

• What makes the accessible element accessible?
• Has it been used and tested by children with disabilities?
• Are any of these elements located in an area that can be reviewed?
• Are all of the accessible play elements incorporated into the main path of travel and fully integrated throughout the play area so as not to create segregated situations?
• Are the accessible play elements joined to accessible routes?
• What form(s) of access is(are) provided to the play component?
  • Transfer points?
  • Ramps?
  • Both transfer points and ramps?
  • Other?

For each element or experience at the play area that is not accessible, is at least one accessible element provided that will offer the same or similar experience? Are the reach ranges and clear widths appropriate for the designed age group and usable by children with disabilities?

Surfaces

Choosing playground surfaces is one of the most challenging tasks when designing playgrounds due to the need to balance requirements for safety with requirements forv accessibility. For safety, the surface must be resilient to lessen the severity of injuries,while an accessible surface requires enough firmness and stability to allow travel without exerting much effort.

Listed below are a few questions that may help managers evaluate a product to determine if it meets accessibility needs. This is not an all-inclusive list; its purpose is to start managers asking access questions, and help them to become familiar with how to evaluate surfaces.

• Does the surface meet ASTM and other safety requirements for children’s environments when used in a fall zone?
• In all instances, safety should be the primary determining factor as to whether the surface is appropriate in a particular area. ASTM and CPSC have specific safety requirements for surfaces used in play environments. All surfaces used should meet these requirements in all weather conditions (i.e. rain, freezing, extreme heat).
• When applied, is the surface a unitary or loose fill?
• Public input will show you that unitary surfaces (rubber matting, poured-in-place, etc.) are easier to walk or roll over than loose fill (processed wood fiber systems, gravel, sand, etc.).

Q. But which should I use—unitary or loose fill surfacing?
A. There is no doubt about it; a unitary surface is much more usable by a greater number of people, both children and adults. For primary access routes (access routes including entry to the play area and connecting activities), the needs of a greater number of people can be met by using a unitary surface. However, the decision of which to use for primary and secondary surfaces is ultimately up to the individual owner.

Q. If it is a unitary surface, does the applied surface have a tendency to crack, loosen, or become uprooted from its footings with fluctuating climates or wear?
A. If the unitary surface is not applied with proper consideration for drainage and climate extremes, the surface can crack, buckle, or even break away. This will impose not only an accessibility problem as the surface will no longer maintain a level cross-slope but also a safety problem, as children may trip in areas that have buckled or fall in areas where the originally safety-tested product no longer meets safety requirements.

Q. Is the unitary surface applied with an adhesive, and if so, what is its staying power?
A. Unitary surfaces such as rubber matting are usually applied with adhesives directly to concrete foundations. After one or two seasons, the surfaces may start to shift, causing unnecessary ruts between sections where a child could trip or the wheel of a person who uses a wheelchair could become stuck. If the unitary surface is used with a loose fill surface, the loose fill can also wedge between sections of the unitary surface and the foundation, causing the adhesive to let go and exposing dangerous, hard surfaces to the play environment.

Q. If we’re considering a loose fill surface, do footsteps or a wheelchair leave impressions, ruts, or tracks?
A. This test can imply that the consistency of the surface may not be firm or stable enough for a child or an adult to travel without exerting considerable physical effort.

Q. For a loose fill surface, what ongoing maintenance issues need to be considered?
A. Loose fill has a tendency to spill over into other areas with heavy travel or play. Loose fill also has a tendency to wear away in heavily used areas (e.g., under swings and at the bottom of slides). Thus, loose fill may need to be replaced on a regular basis to maintain the required depth of consistency to meet accessibility and safety requirements.