Recently the importance of selecting appropriate playground surfaces was highlighted when a girl suffered horrendous facial injuries following a fall. DCM Surfaces have always stressed the importance of installing wet pour safety surfaces to absorb falls and minimise the risk of injury.

The incident occurred at a playground in Gosport, Hampshire when the little girl slipped on a metal grid at the playground entrance which was designed to keep dogs from entering the play area.

Unfortunately she suffered facial injuries, a cut to her lip and to her nose which meant she actually had to undergo surgery at the local hospital and stitches were placed both inside and outside her mouth. It was understood that the girl was running to play on the equipment in the playground when she slipped on the metal grid surface.

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Sadly the injuries sustained in the fall will now scar her face for life, she has developed a fear of going outside in case people will stare and laugh at her. Whilst the surface was not directly in the playground area it was at the entrance and these metal grids are used in other playgrounds throughout the town.

There must be another alternative for keeping dogs from entering the playground area other than these seemingly dangerous metal grids. Maybe the council should look into fencing and gates rather than the metal grids.

Meanwhile inside the playground area care should be taken to ensure that the correct surfacing is installed to the correct critical fall height according to the play equipment which is in place.

Wet pour safety surfacing works by absorbing the impact of any slip, trip or fall by a child and therefore minimises any potential injury to them. This accident, with lifelong scarring could have been prevented; more should be done to ensure appropriate playground surfaces are installed across all playgrounds throughout the UK.

www.dcmsurfaces.com