Nature based playgrounds by KOMPAN

Natural playgrounds in wood – explore our assortment for nature-inspired and nature-based playgrounds

Wooden playground equipment creates a natural playground environment and invites children to interact with natural materials and natural play structures. Being in nature and naturalized environments have a great impact on children and adults’ health and well-being, and spending time in nature or on nature-based playgrounds supports their connection with nature and desire to participate in nature conservation efforts. Choosing a natural theme playground will bring children and adults closer to nature and help grow their connection with nature.

Our Nature Play category is all about creating natural playground play using nature to do so. We use,  Robinia wood and other hardwoods and pine, and we use our design expertise to make sure our natural play structures are fit for nature-based and nature-inspired playgrounds. To manufacture durable natural play structures, we need nature's most durable material. We primarily use Robinia wood and other hardwoods and pine where appropriate, but the arrival of a new shipment of Robinia at our Brno factory is a moment of excitement. That’s because Robinia is a joy to work with. Its strength is held in its grain and we let the grain dictate how we use each piece of timber. In turn, it rewards us all by making every Robinia structure and feature individual, every Castle telling a different tale, every Play System a unique challenge, and every natural theme playground telling its own unique story.

Totally sustainable, the European Robinia is more than just a component material.  With its strength, durability and potential it is at the center of our Nature Play range in the Villages, Ships, Obstacle Courses and for Preschoolers, Play, Act, Learn products.  KOMPAN helps bring the natural playground to a new level of playful development.

For our more assortment of playground equipment - please click here. 

Creating natural play areas with nature inspired playgrounds

Nothing encourages children’s natural play more so than being in nature. Connecting with nature and natural materials awakens children’s instinct to play and explore. We create nature inspired playgrounds to help children re-connect with nature by using nature’s finest materials in our natural play structures and by designing natural playgrounds in respect of nature. Our nature inspired playgrounds give children a natural play environment with room to do what children do best – play and explore. We set loving frames with natural play structures to guide them in their play, and in between there is room for imagination and play in natural surroundings. Nature inspired playgrounds are also a way to bring nature and forest into urban environment. A nature inspired playground will even help you transform the saddest of concrete jungles into a vibrant, inviting natural playground that will spread the freshness of nature throughout the entire community.

KOMPAN has been in the field of natural playground play for more than 50 years, and we see ourselves a true natural playground company. Creating natural playgrounds or nature-based playgrounds that invite children to connect with nature is at the heart of our DNA. We use nature’s best and most durable material to bring the best of play and nature to all children in natural playscapes. 

 

Looking to the future of nature inspired and nature-based playgrounds

When looking at the importance of interacting with and preserving natural environments, we can expect nature inspired playgrounds and nature-based playgrounds to be popular. Important features of playgrounds that inspire nature play are the use of materials that work with the environment, rather than against it. This may mean using natural construction materials such as Robinia wood, but it can also mean using materials such as rope, metal, or HDPE, in a manner that creates a transparent look, allowing children and their families to view and interact with nature while they are at play. The natural playscape will be an attractor to children and families, and with good design, it will support longer and more active playtimes in a natural environment.

 

Combining inclusive play in a nature play environment

Inclusion is also an important consideration in designing a natural playground.  With inclusive design, the principle that persons of all abilities will have structures and spaces to play actively on the playground together. The first step in designing for inclusion in nature play is to ensure accessibility to play choices, such as swinging, sliding, gliding, bouncing, balancing, spinning, rocking, and climbing, as well as access to all of the playful natural elements in the play space such as plants, trees, water, dirt, sand and stones. But designing for inclusion goes beyond access to ensure that the play elements and the natural features are designed so they are appealing and thrilling for persons of all abilities to play together.

 

What is an inclusive natural playground?

An inclusive natural playground is a naturalized environment that incorporates nature into a space with opportunities for children for all abilities to experience different elements of nature and move their bodies in a variety of playful ways. In play design, variety of movement and graduated challenges are the key to sustaining play for all. Along with a variety of non-toxic plants, shrubs, trees, and touchable natural materials in the play space, there should be a variety of structures to support movements for persons of varying abilities. An inclusive natural playground is a place where children play together, with peers of all abilities and across generations.

 

Why are inclusive natural playgrounds important?

Inclusive natural playgrounds attract children and their families to the outdoors. With careful design, these playgrounds keep them playing for extended periods of high activity, and in turn, support child development. These playgrounds are important for several reasons:

-they help children to get acquainted with the local ecosystem

-they help children to appreciate and care for the natural world

-they help to reduce stress

-they help to focus attention

-they support active body movements in ways that cannot happen indoors

 

Why is nature play important for child development?

Experiences in nature and naturalized environments have benefits for health, well-being, and cognitive functioning (Bratman et al, 2012). For children, developing a connection with nature also supports their desire to participate in conservation efforts (Cheng & Monroe, 2012; Hughes et al, 2018; Wells & Lekies, 2006; Zylstra et al, 2014). A connection with nature requires direct and repeated experiences in natural or naturalized environments. With their emphasis on enjoyment, activity, and socialization, natural playgrounds make for the perfect places to support connections with nature.

 

 

 

 

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