Inclusive play takes centre stage at new Kelowna accessible playground
But for kids with different abilities, playgrounds can be full of limitations. The new accessible playground at Mission Creek Regional Park in Kelowna, B.C. is now open to change that.
'We in local government and decision makers really need to put everyone in the forefront of who's using the infrastructure we are building and accessibility is really top of mind,' said Loyal Wooldridge, Regional District Central Okanagan board chair.
Every piece of the playground has been well thought out. It has low stimulation areas for children with sensory sensitivity, and wheelchair-accessible play pieces.
'[It has a] 360 Loop slide; they have handrails located on the bottom,' said Cassandra Desmarais, PlayQuest Recreation project consultant.
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'Once they get to the transfer station at the bottom [of the slide] they can scoot themselves all to the top.'
The playground also features an Orbital Spinner, a type of Merry Go Round that children who use a wheelchair can roll onto.
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Province announces funding for 25 new playgrounds across B.C.
Melissa Grassmick and her 11-year-old daughter Julia are advocates and creators of Julia's Junction, an accessible playground in West Kelowna. They say they are glad to see more of such parks being built.
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'It's just so nice to have people putting a priority on making play spaces inclusive because it's so important and it's so needed in every community,' Grassmick said.
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For Julia, playing on the playground in a wheelchair has always been difficult. Her wheels would get stuck in the rocks and the play structures were difficult to climb. However, she can roll through the new playground with ease.
'It feels better that I am not just watching kids play,' she said.
'Over the years, I have just watched kids run up steps and go down slides when I was younger, and I couldn't do that before Julia's Junction was made.'
She can play with other kids too, because the playground is designed for kids of all abilities to be able to have fun together.
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