PROTECTING COMMUNITY
YOUTH — By Courtney Brown, CPSI of Northwest Play Safe, LLC — I
have spent the last 20 years as a parks and recreation professional and have had the opportunity to work for some of the largest
parks departments in the state. For eight years I sold commercial playground equipment for a major U.S. manufacturer and was mentored in playground safety by Marylou Iverson, one of the foremost experts on playground safety and risk. One thing everyone can agree on is that playgrounds and parks provide a focal point for the community and an opportunity for children to practice and hone key social, emotional, cognitive, and physical skills. However, with these amazing assets comes risk and maintenance that are often overlooked, leading to injury and fiscal damages for homeowners.
Recently I’ve seen a significant increase in playground inspection requests coming in from community associations. Historically 90% of our playground inspections were completed for school districts, parks departments, or childcare facilities. Now over 50% of my playground inspections and audits are for community associations. This surge can be attributed to many things, for example fear of
18 Community Associations Journal | March 2023
litigation, increased knowledge, or required documentation. Regardless of the cause, clearly community association boards and managers understand the importance of safe playgrounds and are prioritizing inspections and maintenance for their parks.
Playgrounds provide a focal point for the community and an opportunity for children to hone key social, emotional, cognitive, and physical skills.
Here are a few playground inspection recommendations, in response to some of the most common questions I receive.
Why Are Playground Inspections Important?
Protecting a communities’ children from hazards is the number one reason for performing playground inspections. A routine
playground inspection will help develop a “standard of care” for the playground that will protect children from injuries and owners from costly accidents. Each year emergency rooms in the U.S. treat more than 200,000 children for playground-related injuries. In fact, playground accidents are the leading cause of injury to children in childcare and to children ages 5-14 in schools. However,
& MINIMIZING LIABILITY
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