Don't forget the kids

Marc Worner makes the point that, although clients are always adults, it's worth keeping in mind many customers have children who will hopefully also enjoy the spaces created for them.

- Marc Worner

All kids play. It’s an essential part of childhood and growing up. In backyards they learn to develop social, physical and emotional skills. To provide kids with this environment, a play space should incorporate areas for quiet, natural, creative, active and stimulating play.

So when discussing play spaces for a clients’ children, consider the following:

• Size of the space

• Ease of supervision

• The age of the existing users

• Possible future family members now just a twinkle in the eye

• Access and suitability for those less able, both young and old, and

• Try to match existing design elements to reduce the impact on the budget (if there are mature trees providing shade, or embankments or natural slopes for proposed slides, for instance).

Think back to when you played as a kid and what you got up to: ball games, riding your bike, playing in a sand pit, or taking tea in a cubby house. These early childhood activities never change, despite the electronic age in which we live.

Plant operator

Deciduous trees play a significant role in any playground. Their shade can reduce temperatures by as much as 10 degrees in summer, and they provide the warmth of the sun to those same areas in winter after losing their leaves. They reduce glare, act as windbreaks, and can be used as an educational tool.

Plants can also be used to create private, hidden spaces. On slopes, plants reduce erosion. Kids with developmental issues are especially responsive to plants which provide them with a myriad of amazing scents, textures, forms, colours and even sounds.