Blog

29 Oct
New Release! Inclusive Design Manual
Posted by Elizabeth Moreno

Today we are thrilled to release our latest manual, “Play for All: Designing Spaces of Inclusion.”  It is a guide to creating play spaces accessible for children of all abilities, written by architect and Playlab Fellow Brian Luce. Download “Play for All: Designing Spaces of Inclusion” here.

Over the years, we at Playground Ideas have been inspired by the community leaders in our global network that have built play spaces which welcome children of all abilities. Working in regions of the world where special needs equipment and surfacing is often unavailable, these individuals have thoughtfully and creatively crafted welcoming spaces for a population of children whose design needs are often overlooked.

kilifi

Kenya

We’ve learned from the examples of Piers Dawson, a volunteer in Kenya who built a recycled playground at a special needs unit of a public primary school and Renet Korthals Altes, an architect from The Netherlands who adapted some of Playground Ideas’ designs to build a playground for a school with children with disabilities in Cairo, Egypt. We’ve been blown away by the “Let All Kids Play” group of volunteers in Kyrgyzstan, who are on a mission to build an accessible playgrounds in each of the seven regions of their country.

Many others around the world have written to us, requesting resources for all access design. We knew designing inclusive playgrounds for children of all abilities required more than simply adding in handicap-accessible elements, so we enlisted Brian Luce, a recent architecture graduate from Syracuse University in New York to create an open-source manual to guide local builders through an inclusive design process.

While at Syracuse, Brian had the opportunity to work on designing and building Play Perch, a wheelchair accessible treehouse and outdoor classroom at a local elementary school. The beauty of the project is that to the outside observer, the Play Perch doesn’t look like an “accessible playground.” It just looks like a really cool treehouse. And that, Brian believes, is the goal of all inclusive play environments.

 “I am interested in the way that good design can be subtle in its attempt to include everyone,” Brian explains, “Playgrounds that shout ‘handicapped’ can be off putting for everyone and designing solutions that are inclusive without giving up their spirit is a goal that every playground should shoot for.”

Play Perch, New York

Play Perch, New York

Brian brought this same philosophy to “Play for All: Designing Spaces of Inclusion.” The manual provides examples, prompts, and guidelines to help builders craft truly inclusive playgrounds that facilitate meaningful interactions between children of different abilities and provides opportunities for challenge, healthy risk and mastery for all children.

Brian writes, “As a designer, I believe it is essential to give everyone a place in our thoughts when designing spaces. One of the most important parts of being a child is exploring the world through play, and it is my hope that this manual inspires people to build more inclusive spaces for children of all abilities to explore the world around them.”

brian luce

Brian Luce

 

Deepen your understanding of inclusive design philosophy and learn strategies for designing playgrounds that welcome and celebrate the unique abilities of all children. Download “Play for All: Designing Spaces of Inclusion” here.

About the Playlab Fellowship: The Play Lab Fellowship with Playground Ideas is a unique opportunity for students and recent graduates to gain experience in the playground field and make a meaningful contribution to an open source movement that is spreading access to play to hundreds of thousands of children across the globe. Dive into international nonprofit work without stepping on a plane and collaborate with creatives from around the world right from your computer screen. We’re looking for talented, innovative, self-starting, think-outside-the-box-ers who are passionate about play and excited to build resources to better serve the Playground Ideas community. See open positions.