Imagining your next playground

Designing a great playground that serves your neighbourhood is so much more than choosing between a swing set and slides.

What it is: Playground replacements are work we do to already-established parks. When we replace playgrounds, we can change surfacing, equipment to play on and seating within the immediate play area.

What it isn't: Except where required for accessibility purposes, playground replacements do not expand beyond the footprint of an existing playground to park trails and pathways, trees, seating structures, splash pads and sports amenities. Those items are determined when new parks are built during a master plan process or as separate capital projects.

Here is a conversation starter to get you thinking about the types of feedback that will help our designers make the best playground for you, your neighbors and the children in your lives.

Category	Things you may want to think about and share with us
Theme	Is there something special about this park that the playground may be able to support or reflect in the park design or equipment selection? Think about things like: the location, where the park is and what is around it the plants and animals and natural landscape surrounding the park the people who make this area special park or neighbourhood history
Desired activities	Think about fun things to do in a playground. What activities would you like to see? climbing swinging spinning puzzle/exploring sliding jumping imagination play …the list of options is endless!
Age of users	We always replace playgrounds with equipment suitable for both ages 2-5 and ages 5-12 (and sometimes both at the same time) but some playgrounds may require more focus on use by one age group over another. Think about the people who like to use this park and who might like to use this park in the future. Is the playground already used mainly by older children or younger children? is the neighbourhood aging or are younger families moving in? What ages of play are represented in near-by recreation amenities already, and what ages of children are not already supported well in this area?
Accessibility and Inclusion Building a playground to meet the needs of park neighbours	In Guelph, we strive to make our playgrounds accessible to children with all kinds of abilities. Playgrounds are a space to grow and develop motor skills and for all children to enjoy the outside world around them through play. Neighbourhood playgrounds in particular are tailored to meet the specific needs of the residents who live within a few blocks of the park. If you or a loved one live close to one of these parks and have a special need for skill development, or experience mobility or cognitive challenges that this playground can adapt to meet through special equipment or planning, please let us know how to make this playground inclusive for its neighbours.
What makes this park special	Every neighbourhood park has its own flavour, and every neighbourhood is unique. What do we need to know about this neighbourhood to make sure the design works for you and the people around you?