The Right Safety Surface for your Playground

Children are bound to fall down in the playground from time to time, but professional playground safety surfacing means that they won’t hurt themselves too badly when they do!

It's important to look at all the options for playground surfacing as they all provide different strengths and are perfect for select situations.

Regardless of which playground surfacing you choose, you can be assured that playground safety is guaranteed! From artificial grass to wet pour, let's have a look into each playground surfacing type and see why you might use it.

What is a Playground Safety Surface?

A playground safety surface is designed to absorb some of the impact from a fall, so that the severity of an injury is reduced. All new climbing play equipment should come with an appropriate safety surface, especially equipment that is more than 600mm tall, or any equipment that uses springs.

A good safety surface is the best way to reduce the number of accidents and potential hospital visits needed due to injuries in your playground.

There are a number of different options available when it comes to safety play surfaces, and each one has its own set of properties that should be carefully considered. Natural grass is a good playground safety surface in some weather conditions, but when it is dry it can become very hard and absorb little to no impact.

In a busy playground it is likely to get worn down and become unusable in wet weather. Ideally, you want playground safety surfacing that works well all the time, in all conditions.

What is Wetpour?

Wetpour is a rubberised tarmac that comes with a smooth finish. It has excellent impact absorbing qualities, making it one of the safest brands on the market. It is extremely durable, and is easily swept clean, which keeps maintenance costs low and makes it a suitable material for a messy play area.

However, the standout feature is the range of colours it comes in. You can use a Wetpour surface as you might use a blank canvas, the only limit is your imagination! Numbers, letters, shapes, you name it, and we can design it either as part of a play area or outdoor learning environment.

Benefits of Wet pour

The benefits of wet pour include:

• It's easy to clean
• Wet pour is low maintenance
• It's really durable
• It's suitable for all types of weather conditions
• Wetpour is great for filling awkward shapes
• It meets the Critical Fall Height requirements

Just by reading these benefits, it's no surprise why wet pour is such a popular playground surfacing option for many schools across the UK.

The ability to create a vibrant and colourful environment whilst protecting children from falls off of playground equipment is something that makes wet pour one of the best play surfaces.

Drawback of Wet pour

It's important to know that it does need to be installed onto a firm base, such as tarmac, granite or crushed limestone - otherwise known as M.O.T. type one. When having wet pour placed as your playground surfacing, you'll need to consider the cost of groundworks.

Due to this fact, wetpour is an expensive playground surfacing option. From our experience, we've often seen schools just place a small amount of wet pour around playground equipment, trying to reduce the cost whilst being safe.

Even though this does reduce the price of the overall safety play surfacing, it can make your playground look lacklustre and slightly patchy, ruining the escapism that the pupils will experience whilst on the playground.

What is Bonded Rubber Mulch?

Bonded rubber mulch is an environmentally friendly playground safety surfacing option available to schools. Also known as Playbond, bonded rubber mulch safety surfacing is made from recycled rubber scraps which are bonded together to create a rubberised surface.

Bonded rubber mulch has great absorbing properties, and is a good economical alternative to wetpour. A lot of schools around the UK have recently started to use bonded rubber mulch for their playground surfacing due to these few reasons.

Benefits of Bonded Rubber Mulch

The benefits of bonded rubber mulch include:

• Requires no maintenance
• Environmentally friendly
• Fantastic drainage
• Can be installed directly on top of grass
• Provides a natural look
• Economically friendly

Bonded rubber mulch is a fantastic playground surfacing option to consider as it provides a wide range of different benefits for an affordable price. We've noticed that most playgrounds across the UK have started utilising Playbond as we've started to receive a huge amount of orders for it!

Playbond comes in greens, browns and other natural colours, and is an excellent solution for those grassy areas which quickly become too muddy for children to play in.

Drawback of Bonded Rubber Mulch

Even though bonded rubber mulch is great for keeping kids safe when they're playing on playground equipment, bonded rubber mulch shouldn't be used for nurseries or play areas where children are encouraged to crawl.This is due to how this playground surfacing releases Carbon Black colour, which can stain skin and clothing.

Over time, playground surfacing that is covered in Playbond can wear down due to heavy use. As the surface wears down, little pieces of rubber bark can become loose.

It's important to check your playground surfacing once in a while to see if this is occurring. If it is, you'll have to speak to a specialist to avoid further damage from occurring.

What is Playturf?

Playturf is an artificial grass turf that looks just like the real thing! It is safe for use under equipment with a Critical Fall Height (CFH) of under 600mm, but you can use it under higher level equipment if you install a rubber membrane underneath the top layer.

Unlike other artificial turfs, Playturf does not require a sand or rubber infill, which keeps initial costs down and maintenance costs low. Playturf is a fantastic solution to those high footfall areas that grass won’t grow in anymore.

Benefits of Playturf

The benefits of Playturf include:

• Requires low maintenance
• Low initial cost
• Meets Critical Fall Height requirements
• Meets FIFA durability requirements
• Porous

Playturf is a fantastic artificial grass surface to consider for your playground surfacing. Having low costs of installation and maintenance, a lot of schools find this surfacing quite appealing out of our range of Playturf.

With a lot of playground surfacing needing to meet certain requirements, Pentagon Play can confirm that our Playturf meets two requirements. It abides by the Critical Fall Height outline and has passed the FIFA durability test, making this artificial grass a brilliant material for playground surfacing.

Drawback of Playturf

Playturf is quite limited when it comes to customisation. If you're looking for a vibrant colour to make your sports pitch, then Playturf shouldn't be used.

As Playturf doesn't have an infill, the blades of grass can flatten over time, making playgrounds covered in this surfacing feel quite baron. It's important to keep track of the condition of your synthetic turf pitch and report any serious damage to a professional to avoid any re-surfacing.

What is Funturf?

Funturf is an all-weather outdoor carpet that comes in a range of colours. Like Playturf, Funturf is safe enough to use on equipment with a CFH of under 600mm, but you can use it under high level equipment if you install a rubber membrane underneath the top layer.

This synthetic turf surfacing option is great for replacing muddy grass areas or to soften tarmac playgrounds. In recent years, a lot of nurseries and pre-schools have started having their playgrounds covered in this surfacing material.

Benefits of Funturf

The benefits of Funturf include:

• Weather resistant
• Available in a variety of colours
• Meets Critical Fall Height requirements
• Durable
• Graphics can be added on it

Out of all the synthetic grass surfacing options we offer, Funturf is definitely one of the most customisable.

The design possibilities are very flexible; roadways, caterpillars, hopscotch and more all look beautiful with Funturf.

Drawback of Funturf

Even though this surfacing is great for making a weather resistant playground, Funturf isn't 100% porous. It can't absorb drops and spills from liquids like paint and mud, so it is not a suitable material for messy play areas.

What about Safermats?

Safermats are impact-absorbing tiles which have holes in them that allow natural grass to grow. This adds more safety value to your grass play areas, without compromising on a natural look.

It is a very affordable playground safety surface, though it is unsuitable for use in areas of high traffic where the grass can get worn away and you are left with an earthy or muddy surface.

Benefits of Safermats

The benefits of Safermats include:

• Weather resistant
• Slip resistant
• Meets Critical Fall Height requirements
• Durable
• Environmentally friendly

Created from recycled rubber, Safermats are a great option for playground surfaces and those who are conscious about the environment. This surfacing type causes no damage to the earth as grass continues to grow through the Safermats.

A big issue that Safermats tackles is slips. Safermats are slip resistant, reducing the amount of slips and trips children take as they run around on the surfacing. Playtime becomes a lot safer when Safermats are introduced to a playground.

Drawback of Safermats

If you plan on using Safermats as your surfacing, it's important to note how much foot traffic your playground usually gets. If there's too much traffic, the grass can get worn out and wear away, leaving you with an earthy or muddy surface.

Another thing to note is that Safermats aren't the most exciting thing to look at. If you want a playground surfacing that can be customised and come in a specific colour, then Safermats aren't for you as they only come in one design.

What are loose fill areas?

A loose fill area contains sand, pea gravel, bark or another similar material which is very safe for a child to fall onto. Keeping the materials in place can require a fair amount of sweeping, especially on windy days, but they are very popular with children and parents who desire a safe playground surface with a natural texture.

Loose fill areas also need top-ups from time to time, which means additional costs should be expected.

The other main drawback is that the loose fill material gets messy when it is spread around an area by little people’s feet and fingers!

Need Further Help?

With so many different playground surfaces available, it can be quite overwhelming to select a surfacing option that would compliment your playground. Luckily, we're here to help!

Having over 25 years of experience in the playground industry, we know what surfacing types are perfect for certain play areas. From a big playground with a variety of different playground equipment, to a small playground with only sports equipment, we know what will suit your playground.

Even the very best safe playground surface can deteriorate over time, so be sure to give any unfamiliar play area a proper check for damage before allowing children to play on it. If you find something of concern, then you should report the problem to whoever is responsible for the play area’s maintenance. Contact Us through the website for more information!