I thought I’d share an article I wrote for the September 2011 edition of Landscape & Hardscape Design Build magazine (yes, it’s a mouthful!) on designing play spaces for children. The article looks at the growing trend of using natural items found in the landscape as play equipment rather than the metal and wooden ‘play environments’ found in many playgrounds.

A garden is an ideal way to connect children to the great outdoors, but it’s a sad fact that childhood and playing outside no longer go hand in hand. We need to create outdoor spaces that entice children to venture away from the TV and out into their backyards. A place where they can explore and play in a safe space created just for them.

These child-friendly spaces don’t have to be large or grand; they don’t have to dominate an existing garden. But, they do need to be a place filled with mystery, magic and wonder. A dynamic space to encourage creativity, imagination and free play; a place for hosting tea parties with fairies, excavating dinosaur bones or building a rocket for a trip to the moon. A space for kids (read the rest at L&HDB).