What to consider when planning a school playground

Posted by Castle and Cubby on September 10, 2024

Planning a school playground transformation? We love a make over, especially one that makes the most of your school space and gets kids excited about play.

As you’ve probably discovered, there’s a lot to consider when planning a new playground for your school, from budget and location to picking out your playground equipment. But with the right preparation, you can absolutely make your playground dreams a reality.

We’ve helped hundreds of schools through the process of designing and/or updating their school playground. Read on to learn the key things to consider when updating your school playground equipment.

Before you start

You don’t need to have all these considerations in place before you contact a school playground equipment company. We can help you through the planning process and come up with a design that’s just right for you.

But it can be helpful to jot down a few points against each of these points below before getting in touch. This can help get clear on your goals and provide something to refer to during the playground equipment planning process.

Set your budget

The first thing to consider is how much you want to allocate towards your new school playground and where that money will come from? You might be tapping into your school’s budget, applying for grants or planning on some community fundraising.

Consider the timeframe to receive the funds, and what support you might need to make it happen. We’ve definitely found that when the community knows their fundraising is going towards a new playground, there’s a lot of enthusiasm that comes with it.

As school playground suppliers, we can put together a playground equipment package that suits your budget. Typically, these cost from $10,000 to upwards of $50,000, depending on what’s included.

If you’ve got big plans but not the budget right now, we can also work with you to plan your playground in stages. The modular nature of our playground equipment makes it possible to install in sections to suit you.

Finally, don't forget to consider ongoing costs like maintenance, too.

Pick the spot for your play space

You likely already have a spot picked out for your playground – if so, how much space is there? This will determine the size and layout of your playground equipment.

If you’re weighing up options, think about things like: how close it is to classrooms, how much sun (and shade) there is, and if the ground is nice and level.

Also make sure the area is easy to supervise and that there’s enough surrounding space for safety considerations.

Remember, even if you don't have a huge space, you can still create something awesome with a bit of clever planning. We’ve designed plenty of playspaces that made the use of otherwise under-utilised space within the school grounds.

Who is the playground for?

Time to think about who’s going to be using the playground – that’s right, the kids. Are you catering to little kids, big kids or a whole-school set up? Make sure you consider the different users of the space too to make sure you plan an inclusive playground – we want every child to have fun, regardless of their abilities.

We can help you create a playground with different zones that cater to different play styles. With elements that challenge and excite, sensory areas to slow down and discovery, and plenty of opportunities for connection.

The more diverse your play options, the more your playground equipment will be used and enjoyed.

Get everyone involved

Creating a new school playground takes a team effort: teachers, the leadership team, parents, community members and – most importantly – the kids themselves.

There are so many ways to get everyone involved. You can send out surveys, get people to vote on options, host a town hall meeting, and organise workshops.

Just make sure you’re clear on the type of input you’re after and who has the final say on the important decisions.

Make a wishlist

Once you’ve got some input, you can put together your playground equipment wishlist. Set down what’s most important to your school community.

Swings, slides, platforms, seating, a garden area, shade – get it all down. Once you have a list, you can prioritise based on your budget and space.

With this wishlist in hand and an indicative budget, you can then start exploring how to make it work.

As Castle and Cubby, we’ve got a lot of experience working with stakeholders to help manage the school playground design and build process. We can take your wishlist and show you what’s possible (and likely come up with a few ideas you didn’t even consider, too).

Make sure aftercare isn’t an afterthought

You haven’t even got your playground designed and we’re already talking about aftercare – what’s with that?

In our experience, we know that schools that consider this aspect early on have a much better experience caring for their investment. Consider how you’ll manage and maintain your playground equipment on a daily, monthly and annual basis.

Here’s a tip: put in place a cubby house and playground team made up of the older year classes. Task them with checking in on things at the end of play time, making sure toys are put away and sweeping out leaves and debris. It helps teach responsibility and school pride and keeps your play area looking great, always.

Planning a school play space is all about balancing dreams with practicality, and most importantly, creating a space where kids can play while learning and growing.