Some parents of disabled kids are calling for more inclusive playground design, and to be involved in the design process.
They say while they appreciate recent efforts by many councils to make playgrounds easier to access and more inclusive, they say there are lots of small changes that will give their kids a much better opportunity to have fun.
Corinne King, who has two boys with muscular dystrophy, was excited to see a makeover of their local playground at Shoesmith Reserve in Warkworth, Auckland. The new one has a smooth surface and equipment such as a merry-go-round that wheelchair users can use, but the basket swing is so high that it's difficult for Corinne to lift her 12-year-old son Ethan into it.
"Simple things like making it lower would make a huge difference," she says.
Ethan was also excited to see a big slide. It has wooden steps with a handrail which are much easier for him to navigate with his limited strength than a ladder. But when he got to the top of the steps there was a rope section between him and the slide so he couldn't go any further.
The kids are repeatedly frustrated that small design factors stop them from using equipment and Corinne, like many parents, is keen to help at an early planning stage. She believes a lived experience can provide valuable input.
Fair Go sought a response from Auckland Council who said it would lower the swing, and would look at providing a swing with back support, but didn't offer to make any changes to the slide.
Another parent who feels let down by current efforts is Amy Clay. Her daughter Indie has cerebral palsy and mostly uses a wheelchair. She wrote to the Ōrākei Local Board when she saw the Selwyn Reserve playground at Mission Bay was being renovated, as she was keen for Indie to be able to use it. With a hectic family life, she'd missed the public consultation but thought she would try to engage prior to the playground being built.
"I thought surely it will be inclusive because it's a new project and I know Auckland Council have impressive documents regarding inclusion and accessibility."
However, she says she felt unheard, and was sorely disappointed when the playground was opened. It seemed ironic that it had accessible surfacing but no equipment for wheelchair users to play on apart from a basket swing that 11-year-old Indie is now too big to use.
Ōrākei Local Board explained that Selwyn Reserve was not designed as a fully inclusive playground and that Indie would be better off going to the nearby Okahu Bay playground. However, Okahu Bay has no disability parking and the roadside parking available would mean Indie having to exit from the family van directly onto a busy road. What's more, the only inclusive facilities are another basket swing and an undulating ramp.
Indie says it makes her feel sad not to be able to do things with her friends. Instead she just has to watch them. She loved an inclusive merry-go-round she tried at another playground over the Harbour Bridge but to hang with her friends the playground needs to be local. This is important stuff for children as playgrounds can offer physical fun and social interaction.
Indie's mum Amy also points out that able-bodied kids have lots of opportunities with trees to climb and sports to play.
"Arguably, playgrounds are even more important for kids with a disability than they are for able-bodied children because the options and opportunities for them to be physically active are a lot harder to find," she says.
Auckland Counci has 887 playgrounds and 129 are accessible and/or include inclusive equipment. This includes Manurewa’s award-winning Te Pua / Keith Park Playground, which it says is "specially designed for children of all abilities and sensory needs".
It says highlights of this playground include a wheelchair-accessible carousel, a net see-saw, an accessible basket swing, and a wooden tower with a ramp and tube slide, as well as sensory features. The playground is fully fenced and features soft-fall surfaces and design features to help guide sight-impaired children.
The council also said it welcomes community involvement and mentioned the opportunity for contributing to public consultations and the fact it has a Disability Advisory Panel. However, Amy says consultations may be missed and it's unclear whether the Disability Advisory Panel includes any parents with disabled kids. She would like to see an approach that allows for more direct engagement.
This is because the key appears to be getting the detail right from the start. Surfacing, such as the common Cushionfall bark is no good for wheelchair users, or pushchairs come to that. Ramps are better than stairs. It helps to have hand holds, swings with back support and equipment adapted for wheelchair users like see-saws and merry-go-rounds.
This might sound like an expensive wish-list so far, but Kapiti Coast District Council has proved that it's not. It recently won Playground of the Year for its Lorna Irene Drive Reserve playground. It has all the features mentioned above without breaking the bank.
"Our budget was small," explains Sonja Williams, place and space marketing and events manager.
"Certainly it was really tight compared with what other regions have to spend on their playgrounds."
They managed by getting creative with material use and tweaking other budgets, and also benefited from having an inclusive swing donated.
But Sonja Williams would say the most important factor was working with a local family: mum Nicola Edmonds and her son Kash who has cerebral palsy.
This enabled them to make it fully inclusive.
"Nicola was awesome, she really had passion and we were able to go with it and it seemed to make sense."
The result has been popular across the board with children of all abilities. "It shows that making the extra effort to make something inclusive does pay off."
Nicola and Kash were thrilled to be part of the process the whole way through.
"Kash made a social story about what he wanted and that included a see-saw, a trampoline and a race track. We're beyond thrilled with what they did, we didn't expect it to be this good."
It comes down to an approach called universal design, which means going beyond minimum accessibility to create play experiences that meet a variety of needs and interests.
It worked so well for Kapiti Coast that they would like to offer their learnings to other councils around the country. Nicola and Kash hope they take up the offer "there's no excuse not to".
This story is part of the Fair Go campaign LIMITLESS, shining a spotlight on accessibility issues in New Zealand.
Previously the programme reported on accessible venues and parking.
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