The Playability Tool Kit is making it easier to create playspaces
that are accessible to children and adults with disabilities.
Playability = Inclusion
Playability is about including everyone in the community when designing a playspace. It means opening up playspaces to children with a wide range of abilities and to parents and other caregivers with disabilities who want to be with children in the playspace.
The Playability philosophy is closely related to the concept of universal design, which addresses the safety and convenience of all users.
The Playability Tool Kit can help communities wanting to build accessible playspaces. It includes:
- background on the Playability philosophy and the importance of inclusive play
- nine guidelines for planning and action
- how to get a playspace project started, who to involve, what to look for, how to fundraise, what to include in a budget, and a timetable
- technical information like recommended slope of ramps and width of pathways
- the Playability Audit
- a worksheet for using the audit results
- questionnaires for children and adults to use in the planning and design stages
- case studies with lessons and advice from four accessible playspace projects in Ontario
- photos of innovative ideas from across the province and around the world
- a list of Ontario playspaces designed with accessibility in mind
- resources — where to get information on universal design, websites with good design examples, play equipment suppliers and manufacturers, funders
- and more
Playability has already proven to be an effective resource in itself. As Nancy MacAlpine of Kitchener’s Country Hills Recreation Association says in the Playability Tool Kit, "OPA’s Playability workshop helped tremendously for us to understand what works and what doesn’t."
And the Toronto District School Board included the draft Playability Audit from the workshops in its Transforming the Schoolyard: How local school communities design and
build their playground learning environment.
The Playability Tool Kit was produced through an EnAbling Change partnership between OPA and the Government of Ontario, Ministry of Citizenship.
The Playability Tool Kit is available from the Ontario Parks Association in the following formats:
- English paper copy
- French paper copy
- CD-ROM
- Braille
- Audio
To order, please print and complete the Order Form and send with payment to OPA or contact OPA at (905) 864-6182, Email opa@ontarioparksassociation.ca
Braille and audio version are available in limited quantities; please contact OPA for information.
