4 important guidelines that a child care centre playground should have

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Playgrounds add excitement and promote socialisation in childcare centres. They also play an important role in keeping your child active and in building up their social skills over time. However, the playground should be safe enough for all kids to use.

There are many cases where swings, slides and other playground components can cause harm to innocent children. As a parent, you play an important role in protecting your child by looking out for the following playground guidelines.

1. No violent behaviour

As much as children love running around, jumping and pushing, your child's day care centre staff should ensure that no children engage in violent behaviour on the playground. In particular, there should be no pushing, kicking or jumping near swings and slides. Any children who break these rules should be disciplined to prevent injury to other children.

2. Supervised periods of play

Your child's day care centre should also have dedicated times for play and other activities. During playtime, there should always be a caregiver nearby to oversee the children. Supervision is important because the adult on site can enforce rules and provide assistance to any children who need help.

There should also be restricted access to the playground. If possible, child care staff should lock the playground area when it's not in use (especially if there is a swimming pool within the area). This will prevent children from playing without adult supervision.

3. Facilities that are well maintained

Another common cause of injury in playgrounds is poorly maintained equipment. Broken swings or loose slides can easily fall off and cause injury to children. Make sure the child care centre staff regularly inspect playground equipment to ensure that it's in good condition.

In addition, children should be discouraged from being overly adventurous while playing. They shouldn't attempt to climb up a slide using the sliding surface or to come sliding down headfirst.

4. First aid kits nearby

Your child's day care centre should also have one or more first aid kits handy. There is always a risk of children becoming bruised or scarred when playing outside. Staff at the child care centre should know how to carry out basic first aid skills, such as patching up small scratches or slowing down bleeding in an open wound.

A first aid kit can provide significant help (such as preventing infection) in such cases where an injured child requires more treatment.

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