Parents warned as Swansea playgrounds rank second in UK injury list

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Children in Swansea face the second-greatest risk of playground injuries

New research from Outdoor Toys has analysed freedom of information requests from local authorities in the UK to reveal each local authority’s playground inspection frequency and the number of injuries.

You can view the full research here:
https://www.outdoortoys.com/blogs/campaigns/playground-injury-report

10 local authorities with the highest number of reported playground injuries: 

Brighton and Hove rank first as the local authority with the most playground injuries – with 16 reported incidents in 12 months. Home to 15 public parks, including Hove Park, Easthill Park, and Blakers Park, Brighton saw the most frequent injuries on slides, swings, and sandpits. Despite this, Brighton and Hove carry out the second-most frequent playground inspections, with visual checks every weekday, in-depth inspections every two weeks, and quarterly and annual operational inspections.

Swansea ranks second, with 10 reported playground injuries across 12 months. In the 10 injury cases, there were two events of broken bones and three cases of cuts and grazes sustained in Swansea’s play areas. 3 incidents occurred on swings, and 2 further incidents occurred on a zip line swing.

Bradford ranks third, following closely behind, with 9 playground injuries reported within the year. Bradford has 36 public parks covering more than 270 hectares. Of the injuries reported in Bradford, fractures and bruises were the most common, with four incidents each.

Several local authorities, including Reading, Cardiff, County Durham, and Sheffield, share fourth place with 5 reported playground injuries across 12 months.

Alex Price, product expert at Outdoor Toys comments:

“Supervision is one of the most important things when keeping your children safe at public playgrounds. Supervision is vital because you can help reduce the risk of your child getting injured. Watching out for potential hazards, keeping an eye on the equipment your child is using, and staying nearby means you can intervene if necessary.

It’s crucial to check the equipment and facilities at the playground before letting your child use them, as they can be riddled with potential hazards – if you do come across broken or faulty equipment that could cause harm, not only should you explain to your child not to use it, but you should report it to your local council to avoid other children injuring themselves. You can report this by calling them, or going online to your local council’s website.”