A Soft Play inspectors work is never done!

It’s been all too long since my last blog. The problem has not been an absence of inspections to report on – quite the opposite. It’s been one job after the other and trying to squeeze in enough office time in between to write up all the reports. Something had to give hence the silence. It’s quite interesting to do an overview of a busy period like this. Altogether there have been 12 inspections of which 5 have been annuals and 7 post-installations. There were 9 new or established Play Centres to visit, 2 new Leisure Centre facilities and 1 new facility in a Special School. And taken overall there have been 6 different suppliers. Geographically it was another case of travelling all points of the compass, from Durham down to south of the Thames and from the Norfolk coast across the Irish Sea to Counties Louth and Meath.

Monday: Up the A1 North to the lovely county of Durham and a well-established Play Centre’s Annual Inspection. Always a pleasure to go there and always a warm welcome.

Wednesday: If I tell you I have been trying to work out a route to avoid the congestion charge you’ll know where next – London! Two large and busy Play Centres both heaving with customers. A long day and strenuous work with much driving. Climbing around two large play frames is one thing. Going through all the necessary safety operations with the manager is another and all have to be looked at within the wide scope of an annual inspection. Exhausting!

Thursday: A job nearer home – Birmingham and a towering new five-storey play frame to inspect. Installation team still on site so the few findings can be immediately addressed. I like that.

Friday: To the East Midlands for another annual. Went there last over two years ago and it’s always interesting to see if changes have been made.

Tuesday: Down the M5 today and to a Special School in fashionable Cheltenham. Very proud of their new school being built alongside the old one and thrilled to have a brand new soft play room to explore. As a former teacher I always accepted the essential role of play in education and it’s good to chat with those still in that worthy profession.

Thursday: To North London and a new indoor play facility in a Leisure Centre. After the strain of the last few weeks decided to combine the trip with a short cultural break with Veronica. Chelsea Flower Show was just so impressive and equally so in a totally different way was the West End production of Waiting for Godot. Never did understand the plot but what superb character-acting and stage-craft from Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart! Awesome!

Tuesday: Back down to earth and another new Leisure Centre soft play facility to inspect, this time situated right on the breezy sea front in North Norfolk. I couldn’t resist a large tub of salt-fresh sea-food salad after the job! You’ve earned it I said to myself. And so I had.

Wednesday: Now it could be argued that the last thing a person of my advanced years needs after a long journey to Norfolk is a 4-00 a.m. start the following day to catch the East Midlands to Dublin flight. I wouldn’t dissent from that but it had to be done. Two post-installations later and a late flight back, my bed beckons!

Friday: Not sure where Thursday went – I think I slept through it! But no rest today – off to Dorset for yet another post-installation. Roll on the weekend and our final jazz concert of the current season.

Monday: With the strains of an 18 piece jazz band still ringing in my ears it’s off to Yorkshire for one more annual this time triggered by a small child’s accident. Fortunately the injury was not too serious but all accident investigations are distressing and all need to be taken very seriously.

Nick Balmforth is an inspector of Soft Play areas and is renowned for his expertise and knowledge of creating and operating safe Indoor Play areas. This blog is an excerpt of his diary which he shares with the Shareandcompareplay.com community in the hope that regular communication and insight will benefit the industry and raise standards.

The play inspector calls.....part 7

I’ve certainly spread myself around the UK since my last blog! Two jobs in Scotland followed by yet another early morning flight across the Irish Sea and finally a trip down the motorway to Essex. Fortunately I have a number of days in between each job both to stay on top of report writing and to catch up on some much needed relaxation. How do I relax? Well a wonderful wife helps and then there is jazz! Being the Chairman of Stafford Jazz Society I organise around 35 live concerts a year as well as acting as MC. This music ought to be available on the NHS it’s certainly got me through some difficult times!

Friday: To Scotland and to a very large new Play Centre. I decide to let the train take the strain for this one. Glasgow bound I settle down to a Sudoku puzzle – well it keeps the brain active! Glasgow Central then to Glasgow Queen Street, a brisk walk between the two and I am soon on my way to Falkirk. Quite the largest toddler play frame that I have seen for a very long time and the junior frame is huge too with a large Go-Kart circuit adjacent. I do admire operators who take on a business of this size. It demands both vision and a degree of bravery especially in these very uncertain financial times. They deserve to succeed.

Monday: Off up the M6 to Border country just beyond Carlisle. I enjoy this journey north once the green rolling hills and mountains of the Lake District surround me. Then there is my favourite Motorway Service Station at Tebay to savour. A Cumberland sausage? Why not! Destination - an attractive new site in a small border town and a Play Centre with a very agricultural theme to it. A good mix of traditional soft play features and others presenting more adventurous challenges, including a climbing wall! These have been installed in a growing number of play centres in more recent years but I have had little feedback on how popular they are.

Wednesday: Another 4 o’clock rise for the early morning flight to Northern Ireland. This time it’s Manchester to Belfast International and then a hire car to Carrickfergus. I really like driving in Ireland. The countryside is delightful and the roads are generally much more relaxed than over here. Hardly ever see a speed camera not that I am a fast driver. This job is at a newly refurbished Leisure Centre. I’ve had quite a number of these recently, must be some money to spend in local government. Quite a large three-tiered play frame and part of it designated for disco dancing! That’s a first!

Friday: A long car drive to Essex. Veronica joins me. It’s good to have her company in the car. An interesting annual inspection - the original owner was Italian and there is green, white and red prominent everywhere. The three-lane slide closely resembles a long flowing Italian flag and you will by now have guessed the colours of the balls in the ball-pool. Pizzas and garlic bread are on sale. How to have a wide circle of friends! Catch up with me next week.

Nick Balmforth is an inspector of Soft Play areas and is renowned for his expertise and knowledge of creating and operating safe Indoor Play areas. This blog is an excerpt of his diary which he shares with the Shareandcompareplay.com community in the hope that regular communication and insight will benefit the industry and raise standards.

The play inspector calls.....part 6

There are some advantages to working from home. There is also a downside! The office is always but a few steps away and both business telephone line and computer work on regardless. Finding a balance between home life and work commitments can be a stiff test. Fortunately I seem to get it right most of the time. At least that is my story but I think Veronica would concur. Hope so!

Inspection jobs started up immediately after Easter. So close in fact that the first one in Keighley needed to be combined with saying goodbye to family at Manchester Airport. Convenient geographically at least.

Wednesday: Post installation inspection. A large new extension to an existing and clearly very popular play centre. Very good to see business success leading to an expansion of a facility especially during this severe economic downturn. And a new team leader appointment seemingly working so well there. The owner seemed very pleased and certainly she appeared to me to have the right range of organisational and team management skills during our brief encounter. So very important staffing and staff management. Now that the design, manufacture and installation of these indoor play facilities has markedly improved over the last 20 years their safety more and more depends upon the operational systems in place and how well they are applied. And that comes down to staff and their management. Get that right and everything else falls into place.

Thursday: Today I’m heading for a Sure Start children’s centre in Greater Manchester. And quite the smallest multi-level indoor play frame I have ever inspected! Tucked into an alcove in a community play room it almost resembled a rather deep bookcase! Certainly it tested my own climbing capabilities. Must lose weight! Unknown supplier and an interesting use of perforated plastic panelling instead of mesh netting. Some repairs and maintenance needed and these were identified and photographed for my Report.

Monday: The first of two trips this week to Ireland. That means a very early start to get to East Midland Airport on time for the BMI Baby morning flight to Belfast International. But it doesn't stop there for the job is almost on the Donegal coast way over to the west. Breathtakingly beautiful journey along generally quiet roads and the drive through the Glenveagh National Park was stunning, a wilderness landscape so remote and so hauntingly beautiful. New play centre located in a health club that is itself located within an impressive hotel. Already in use whilst I was there and a small child found my clipboard and Biro whilst I was inspecting a horizontal roller squeeze and when I got back to it to make notes it had been totally scribbled upon! Occupational hazard - force a smile and press on!

Wednesday: An even earlier start for an even earlier flight this time by RyanAir to Dublin. And if that’s not enough there’s the morning traffic into the city! Only 45 minutes to the site I had been told! Well, two and a half hours after touch-down I was walking through the new play centre’s front door! But a great new site and a lovely client to do business with. He makes good coffee too!

Nick Balmforth is an inspector of Soft Play areas and is renowned for his expertise and knowledge of creating and operating safe Indoor Play areas. This blog is an excerpt of his diary which he shares with the Shareandcompareplay.com community in the hope that regular communication and insight will benefit the industry and raise standards.

The play inpector calls...part 5

The inspection pace that hotted up during March shows little sign of abating, at least pre-Easter. Since my last blog I have carried out four inspections: a new indoor facility in a huge shopping centre needing its post-installation check, followed by a large established play centre in County Durham needing its annual inspection. Then quite the smallest community play centre I have ever had to annually inspect down in Essex and today to north London for yet another annual.

There may not be as many post-installations coming through as credit tightens but the demand for annuals remains. And so it should since the value of a yearly independent check must surely make good sense to all safety-conscious operators and if it doesn’t one really has to question their business judgement. If for no other reason the insurers back it and sometimes with reduced premiums.

Another interesting detail – four facilities and four different suppliers. I like variety.

Tuesday: A job in Sheffield followed the next day by another further north-east makes an overnight stop inviting. And as my wife’s Austrian family are over for a break an opportunity for them to do a little shopping and sightseeing whilst I get myself dusty! Finding a play centre in a busy shopping centre is always a challenge. Turn left along the mall then right at the next junction and down the escalator and you can’t miss it! Sensing my doubts the Customer Services Manager comes to my rescue and suddenly there it is. Easy really! The view from the top of the escalator is really something! This must be a prime location! A few last minute installation jobs are being finished off but in I go. There is always a value in arriving on site whilst the installation team are still there. Last minute queries arise from them and safety issues found by myself can be immediately addressed. And so they are. On to York. A beautiful historical city and a pleasure to introduce for the first time to visitors from abroad.

Wednesday: Family stay on in York whilst I hit the A1 north. Target Newton Aycliffe. SatNav works perfectly and I am guided to the front door. Very big site and how good to see a large toddler’s play frame with so much choice and play value packed into it. So often there is all too little. Certainly there is adventure and challenge at this Centre with drop slides, bungee trampolines and a climbing wall all vying for the older children’s attention in addition to the more regular features. Very helpful and hospitable Assistant Manager helped to make the job a pleasure.

Saturday: Yes Saturday! I sometimes work weekends when it is necessary at it was that day. A very small and cosy play centre for the lower age range and in the heart of a more rural Essex community. Clearly much appreciated by the local clientele and it was good to be able to pass on some advice to the two hard-working and very committed sisters who run the business.

Tuesday: A job in north London and close to a tube station makes rail travel from Stafford impossible to resist. And the trains ran on time both ways! Is this a first? Last went there in 2006 and it was good to see the facility still well used and being enjoyed. As usual followed around the play frame by a multitude of enquiring children. Feel like the Pied Piper of Hamlin sometimes! How many times do I have to say “I’m carrying out a safety inspection”? A husband and wife team own the business and both have very responsible and demanding first jobs in their community, one in health care and the other in the prison service. You have to admire their energy and commitment.

Looking forward to an Easter break now. Catch up with me again after that.

Nick Balmforth is an inspector of Soft Play areas and is renowned for his expertise and knowledge of creating and operating safe Indoor Play areas. This blog is an excerpt of his diary which he shares with the Shareandcompareplay.com community in the hope that regular communication and insight will benefit the industry and raise standards.

Science: Play is critical for Children (and Adults)

This is a fascinating article on the serious need for play that has implications for the indoor play industry and beyond. It is a dramatic (and scientifically researched) call-to-action to re-imagine the provision and role of play in society.

Anyone involved in play (from soft play equipment suppliers to play operators and parents) should digest this article time and again and immediately consider their part in supporting the creation of a free-play environment; it should immediately change the way in which every play centre is designed, built and operated.

Moreover, this should be read by every parent, by every adult (especially if they have forgotten how to play), by every indoor play operator, by every play designer, by every person who works or lives with children.

This has changed our business forever and renewed our focus on being a catalyst for change in the play industry; please share it with everyone you know.

Key concepts:

• Childhood play is crucial for social, emotional and cognitive development.
• Imaginative and rambunctious “free play,” as opposed to games or structured activities, is the most essential type.
• Kids and animals that do not play when they are young may grow into anxious, socially maladjusted adults.

Some highlights:

“Data suggest that a lack of opportunities for unstructured, imaginative play can keep children from growing into happy, well-adjusted adults. “Free play,” as scientists call it, is critical for becoming socially adept, coping with stress and building cognitive skills such as problem solving”

“a play-deprived childhood disrupts normal social, emotional and cognitive development in humans and animals…limiting free play in kids may result in a generation of anxious, unhappy and socially maladjusted adults. The consequence of a life that is seriously play-deprived is serious stuff… But it is never too late to start: play also promotes the continued mental and physical well-being of adults.”

“The child initiates and creates free play. It might involve fantasies—such as pretending to be doctors or princesses or playing house—or it might include mock fighting, as when kids (primarily boys) wrestle and tumble with one another for fun, switching roles periodically so that neither of them always wins. And free play is most similar to play seen in the animal kingdom, suggesting that it has important evolutionary roots.”

“M. Pellis, a behavioral neuroscientist at the University of Lethbridge in Alberta. Although those instincts are natural, protecting kids “simply defrays those costs to later, when those same children will have difficulty in dealing with an unpredictable, complex world,” Pellis says. “A child who has had a rich exposure to social play experiences is more likely to become an adult who can manage unpredictable social situations.”

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The play inspector calls.....part 4

Another varied week and a reminder that when I refer to providers of indoor play facilities I am not just talking about those who run Play and Party Centres as a private business but also those that want an indoor play facility as part of a wider range of child and family services offered in their establishment. These can be in recreation, child-care, visitor centres, airports, theme parks, passenger ships or whatever. Over the 18 years or so that I have been doing this work I have never ceased to be amazed at the many and varied places the inspections have taken me. For my part it all helps to keep my business life interesting and it also shows just how this still fledgling industry has spread its wings since it began to see light of day in children’s hospitals and special schools back in the 1970s.

Last week of the four jobs carried out two were in local authority run sports and leisure centres up in the North East, one was a large established play centre run in association with a children’s nursery on a trading estate in the East Midlands and the other a small down-town day nursery in the West Midlands. Three were independent post-installation inspections and one an annual. Play frames and equipment inspected came from three different suppliers, all British.

Monday: I Head north-east up the A1. A long-haul journey with refreshment break at Scotch Corner but traffic is generally light and progress none too difficult. My targets are two established Sports Centres close to or on the east coast each having serious money spent on them as part of a major upgrading of facilities. My Sat-Nav gets totally confused as I approach the Tyne-Tunnel. Do a U Turn! Are you serious? I arrive at the first job. So glad I keep my hard hat and fluorescent jacket in the back of the car since the site is teeming with construction workers. Fairly small two-level play frame, very well designed and built and with no big safety issues to address. Move on. Next site a convenient five miles away so soon there. Main problem is that another 24 hours are necessary before the site is completely finished although the basics are all in. Still this gives me a welcome opportunity to talk through some remaining issues with both the installation team leader and the Sports Centre Manager and both seem to feel it was good to have me there at that time. All safety issues appear to have been well thought about and planned for and I eventually leave site confident the job will be well finished off.

Tuesday: I arrive at a large, attractive and now well established Play Centre. It is well said you never get a second chance to make a first impression. This Centre never fails to impress me. As soon as I set foot through the door it is immediately warm, inviting and informative. Reception staff show all the evidence of good training and go through all the correct admission procedures. So important! I am met warmly by the owner who soon hands over a full analysis of all the accidents and injuries recorded at his Centre over the previous twelve months. Altogether it is a very impressively detailed piece of work by a very well organised and caring proprietor. Unsurprisingly the remainder of the annual inspection is a pleasure to carry out.

Wednesday: From one of the largest Play Centres to one of the smallest I have ever inspected. But that makes it no less valuable to those who run it and the Day Nursery children who came in to trial it whilst I was there certainly gave it the thumbs-up. A few safety issues to address – there often are in very small facilities where everything is very close but essentially the product is well designed and built.

That’s all the travelling for this week but again reports have to be written so it’s back to the computer.

Nick Balmforth is an inspector of Soft Play areas and is renowned for his expertise and knowledge of creating and operating safe Indoor Play areas. This blog is an excerpt of his diary which he shares with the Shareandcompareplay.com community in the hope that regular communication and insight will benefit the industry and raise standards.

The play inspector calls.....part 3

Inspection calls are rather like buses; you can wait for ages for one to come along and then suddenly many arrive in quick succession! It was so quiet from November through to February. Just fifteen jobs over a four-month period. I really thought the credit crunch was beginning to hit the UK indoor play industry big time. And then March! Eleven jobs done as I write this piece with three more to do before the end of the month. The types of inspections are very evenly split with seven post-installations and seven annuals. Good to have some variety it keeps the mind sharp. Last week it was four on the South Coast; this week has started with two in the North East. Today it’s the East Midlands, tomorrow the West Midlands. It’s a wonder my car doesn’t get dizzy!

Back to last week. I thought it was going to start with an inspection on the Wednesday but suddenly the call came through that this was postponed. Not to worry. A very welcome extra 24 hours to get over the Bangkok jetlag!

Thursday: Driving almost due south from my home in Stafford to a play centre that has become something of a regular for me over the years. I first inspected it way back in July 1994. Little did I realize then that I would still be climbing its frames and trudging my way through its ball pools in March 2009! In fact the number of past reports in my bulging file shows this one to be the 28th. It must hold the national record for the highest number of my inspection visits. Still, the fact that it continues to give good service in a busy seaside resort and against competition from a growing number of more modern play centres in the area must say something. It does. It is always well staffed with a well-led highly motivated team backed by very good management. Vital ingredients if a play centre is going to survive and prosper. Others take note.

On to the next job and this time not far to motor. An interesting and impressively large Play Centre designed, manufactured and installed by a Chinese company. Having carried out its post-installation inspection last year I was keen to see how it was getting on. A very positive first year of trading was reported and the play frame and equipment was standing up well to the rigours of many tiny feet. Again it soon became clear that its success was due in no small measure to the drive, energy and sheer commitment of its General Manager. Staff selection working well.

Forty miles down the coast and I was able to get job number three in on the same day. I’ll sleep well tonight! Another Play Centre of the same chain as the last one and again of Chinese origin. This time built in 2007. Very similar story. The fabric of the facility looking good and the Centre being very ably led. Another successful year of business reported.

Finally I need a bed. But have you ever tried to park your car in Brighton? I lost count of the number of circuits I made of the sea front before opting to stay overnight in a hotel with its own underground car park. A very hot Indian curry was eagerly sought. I felt I had earned it.

Friday: A shortish journey to the last job of the week. A play centre built by a British company in 2006. Some wear and tear found and there was a need to tighten up on a few operational procedures but no big safety issues. Three hours later I am heading home via the M25 and through Friday afternoon traffic! No need for speed cameras – portrait painters can do the job! A weekend of Report writing looms. Must keep on top.

Nick Balmforth is an inspector of Soft Play areas and is renowned for his expertise and knowledge of creating and operating safe Indoor Play areas. This blog is an excerpt of his diary which he shares with the Shareandcompareplay.com community in the hope that regular communication and insight will benefit the industry and raise standards.