Is Your Playground Safe?

Consider this scenario.  It's a warm sunny Sunday morning and your Kinder Church workers decide to take the children outside to play on the church playground.  Five year old Johnny loves to swing so he heads straight for the swing set.  Johnny loves to swing really high so he gets going as high as he can.  Suddenly the chain holding the swing breaks and Johnny hits the ground hard.  The workers run to his aid to find that Johnny may have broken his arm and has a head injury.  EMS is called and the parents are brought over from the main Sanctuary. Johnny is taken to the hospital and you as a church staff wait to hear how he is.

A few weeks later you receive a letter in the mail from Johnny's parent's attorney.  They have filed a lawsuit because Johnny has permanent damage from the accident that he will deal with the rest of his life.  You decide to inspect the playground to see what you may be dealing with and this is what you discover.  The playground equipment was purchased and installed by the Men's Ministry group over 15 years ago.  It is composed mostly of wood and metal.  There is only about two inches of cushion material below the equipment.  You also discover that the chain broke on the swing because of metal fatigue and age.  There are sharp edges and splintered wood all over and the equipment has never been inspected and repaired.

When is comes to the safety of our children we must ensure that the playground equipment that they play on is safe and trustworthy.  Here are some things to consider.

• The equipment must be age appropriate.  Younger children should not play on equipment made for older children.
• It should be appropriate for heavy use.  Do not purchase and install equipment intended for home use by two or three children for your church play area.
• Ensure that it is professionally installed.  If the Men's Ministry group installs it make sure that there is a professional over seeing the project.
• There must be a minimum of eight inches of cushion material under the equipment.  (sand, sawdust, rubber, etc)
• It must be inspected at least monthly and any issues or defects repaired or replaced immediately.

Accidents can happen but you do not want to contribute to an accident by allowing your playground equipment to deteriorate or by installing inferior equipment.  Our children and their parents have an expectation of safety when they come to church.  If you have never inspected your playground equipment, do so immediately.  Make the appropriate repairs and replace what needs to be replaced and provide a safe and happy environment for the kids in your care.

As always if you need more information on this and other church risk topics visit my website www.trinityriskmanagement.com.