Playground Safety: Too Important to Ignore

Playground Safety is a subject we at Yippy find ourselves talking about more and more often. It wouldn't surprise you to know that there are many playgrounds at schools, creches and public parks all over South Africa.

What might shock you to know however is that Playground Safety in many of those playgrounds is lacking and every year many thousands of children are injured and disabled as a result of accidental injury in playgrounds and according to recent statistics, on average a further ten each year will die. 

The safety of the children who use those playgrounds has only been covered under National Safety Standards fairly recently.

When you consider that Playground Safety Standards have been in use in other parts of the world since the late 1970's and in some countries, as early as 1926 South Africa then, was a little slow but the current National Standards were introduced in 2010:

South African National Standard SANS 51176 parts 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,10 and 11 General requirements and test Methods for playground equipment.

South African National Standard SANS 51177 Surfacing requirements underneath playground equipment

South African National Standard SANS 54960 Inflatable amusement and play equipment - Safety requirements and test methods

Yippy Playground Projects: Kinnerlant Kleuterskool January 2013

Kinnerlant Kleuterskool in Monument contacted us when they realised that they needed new swings in their playground. And Playground Research shows, you can never have enough swings!

The school took, in total; One Tyre Bucket Swing, which is an all round swing that can be used from the age of around two (with supervision) up to 92.

With the Yippy Designed foldover front. R150

Yippy Playground Projects: Little Giants Nursery School, Centurion

We visited Little Giants Nursery School in Centurion on one of our December Sales Trips, and were delighted to received an order from them to add some Yippy to their playground this month.

We do love adding Yippy to an existing Playground.

First things first, swings! Little Giants had a new Reclaimed Timber Pole Set with three Tyre Horse Swings, note the diameter of the poles we use. Yippy believes in making structures that last, so we use thicker poles than the industry standard.

Three Horse Swings, awaiting riders ..

Yippy Playground Projects: Tyre Elephants at Poplar. September 2012

A BRAND NEW product, the Yippy Tyre Elephant, that we here at Yippy are rapidly falling in love with.

Launched officially last month, Jason worked on prototypes and a redesign first but we were soon asked, by Poplar Academy in Crowthorne, to install a Family Group of three Elephants in their playground.

Huddled together at the Yippy workshop, waiting for a home ...

Yippy Playground Projects: Monaghan Montessori, Lanseria. August 2012

Monaghan Farm Montessori is set in the Monaghan Farm development near Lanseria, giving it a beautiful and country-feel location.

Principal Xanthe Bester contacted us after she'd seen the Planet Bridge Jungle Gym we designed for Poplar Academy in Crowthorne and asked us to install one in the schools playground for her.

Yippy loves to restore and reuse materials, so we were more than happy to reduce our normal price when Xanthe told us she had an old slide she wanted us to use.

Yippy Playground Projects: Poplar Academy, Crowthorne. April 2012

When Lizelle Naude, Principal of Poplar Academy in Crowthorne, emailed Yippy at the beginning of April and said "I would like to add a few structures to our playgrounds this term" suffice to say, it made Yippys day! We'd worked with Poplar in December last year and this time, Lizelle had emailed two designs of her own that she wanted us to realise. Jason couldn't wait to get started.

First of Lizelle's designs was for a Horse Ride On Climber for the Preschool playground.


He/she needs a name ... anyone?

The design worked so well we went on to make a larger one for the Primary playground also and we'll definitely be adding the Horse Climber to our product list very soon. 

Yippy Playground Projects: Linksfield Castle Nursery School, Edenvale. March 2012

Linksfield Castle Nursery School in Edenvale is one of a group of three schools owned by Sao Rosa and Lucy da Silva and when the ladies contacted us and asked us if we'd install pieces in all three schools, we couldn't wait to get started.

The schools requests included for a large Pirate Ship and a couple of Ten Tyre Swings.

Linksfield has a lovely contained playground and there was space for a few new additions and some exciting pieces for the children to stretch themselves and have fun on.

We installed a small Tyre Ball Climber first, in a nice shady spot of the playground. This one's good for all ages and very simple and quick to install.

Inside or Outside, there's lots of scope for climb.

Yippy Playground Projects: Poplar Academy, Crowthorne. December 2011

When Poplar Academy in Crowthorne contacted us in September last year and asked us to design them a Tyre Jungle Gym for their preschool playground, we couldn't have been more pleased.

Owner of the school, Lizelle Naude, had bought three Tyre Horse Swings from us on a previous Sales Trip and we had left the school at the time, loving the play spaces and wishing we could add more Yippy.

And here was our chance! Yippy loved the natural setting chosen for the gym and Jason began working on a design that incorporated the surroundings.

Yippy Playground Projects: Alma Mater Akademie, Krugersdorp. October 2011

In October 2011, Yippy was asked to install a few playground items at Alma Mater Akademie in Krugersdorp. We installed a climbing shape, some swings and a Tyre Cargo Net and it was Yippy's first installment since our move to Joburg, and still early days for us, it was a learning curve as well.

We'll always remember working with Alma Mater fondly, as they gave Jason (co owner and main designer, amongst many other things) the freedom for the first time to create a bespoke design for them in their playground.

Jason was excited on discussing plans with the school to find out that they had a lovely tree in their playground, that they wanted him to incorporate into a playground piece. Jason loves the chance to use nature in the playground in this way, and he'd soon come up with a design for a Tyre Tree Bridge.