Artificial grass is the perfect solution for the needs of a playground. Low maintenance, cushioned falls, and aesthetic appeal are just a few of the factors that lead to schools up and down the country choosing artificial turf for their play safety surfaces. However, it’s no secret that children need creativity in order to spur their imagination and inspire their play, and artificial grass can be used in a multitude of ways to achieve this.
PlaySmart has compiled this article filled with inspiration and ideas on how you can use your artificial grass in creative new ways to provide an engaging and immersive play experience for children of all ages and abilities.
1: Time-Out Areas
If you’ve ever been around a playground, you know kids take ‘play hard’ almost too seriously! For those worn out after a fun play time, you can use your artificial grass to create ‘time-out’ zones, where kids can take a seat or have a moment of quiet. Not only is this a good way of giving children a way of stepping back and preventing them becoming too tired, this is also a very beneficial idea for children that may have difficulties with socialising, sensory processing or similar.
The option for a time-out space means these children have a quiet place where they can retreat to if they get too overwhelmed by their surroundings and need to have a quiet moment or be away from other children.
2: Underneath Playground Equipment
Safety is of paramount importance when it comes to playing. PlaySmart recognise that and have developed our own unique shock pad that can be fitted underneath artificial grass to provide an extra layer of protection. The SmartPlay system is a perforated shock layer that can be installed under artificial grass, and meets critical fall height measurements from 0.7m to 3.0m. When the inevitable slip, trip or fall occurs, SmartPlay has you covered.
3: Artificial Grass and Wet Pour
One of our favourite ideas here at PlaySmart is to create fun and inviting play spaces that help spur children’s imaginations. By combining artificial grass and wet pour, we can create a much wider range of designs that take on a wide range of different colours, shapes and patterns.
There is a lot of evidence in research that bright colours and creative patterns help children’s early development and assist in imaginative play by providing inspiration for role play or similar play. By combining our quality RubbaSmart wet pour and Green Frog artificial grass, your creative possibilities are endless!
4: Running Tracks
Running has a whole host of proven physical and mental benefits, and a running track is a common fixture in many schools. They make excellent additions to P.E lessons, after-school clubs, sports days and athletic teams – it’s much easier to encourage kids to get up and get active when the facilities are right in front of you!
There are plenty of different artificial grass options available, and some turfs are designed more for a sports surface. By selecting an artificial grass design with a more astro-turf-like surface, this ensures a better grip for running and a cushioned surface in the event of a slip or fall.
5: Road-Themed Play Area
As we already know, playgrounds need fun and creative designs in order to inspire imaginative play. PlaySmart has many requests for customised playgrounds and we’re happy to work alongside our clients, using all our expertise and resources to turn our client’s vision into a reality.
A common request is creating a racetrack or road theme for a school, which PlaySmart can easily create through using a velour grass ‘carpet’ that is soft, able to incorporate patterns and designs, and really helped spark the imagination of children playing on it.
We hope this article gave you some inspiration for how you can use your artificial grass in creative ways, but we’re sure there’s plenty more ideas out there! Please get in touch using the link below if you have any requests, and we’ll help you turn your playground vision into a reality!