PLAYGROUND guru Prue Walsh rallies against modern-day trends which try to prevent young children from climbing, swinging or falling down.
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In fact, the early childhood expert has dedicated the past 20 years trying to achieve exactly the opposite – creating playgrounds where preschoolers can do everything that comes naturally.
Yesterday, Ms Walsh was in Port Macquarie to advise staff at the Port Macquarie Community Preschool about three playgrounds which will soon be upgraded to meet strict licencing standards.
"A good playground needs to be stimulating, engaging and motivating for children," Ms Walsh said.
"They need to encourage children to learn physically, socially and also through problem solving."
But Ms Walsh agreed the threat of legal action against playground owners had impacted on the design and set-up of playgrounds.
"Of course playgrounds need to be safe but not to the point where children are stifled in the way they play and interact," she said.
"I think parents need to understand that a grazed knee or a scratched finger is not the end of the world.
"In fact, falling down every now and then is part of the learning process for young children.
"When I give advice about playgrounds, I aim to remove the risk of serious injury. But I expect minor accidents to happen."
Ms Walsh, who will be paid $4500 for her two-day consultation with Port Community Preschool, has advised the centre to take advantage of its natural setting.
"These playgrounds are very lucky because they are quite large and are set in very natural surroundings," Ms Walsh said.
Port Preschool managing director Alison Davis said the consultation had been successful.
"We needed the expertise that only a person of Ms Walsh's standing can bring in order to both meet licensing standards and meet the special needs of early childhood children," Ms Davis said.
