Province not helping pay for playgrounds 'a failure to our kids,' parent says

Some parents on Elm Street Elementary School'splayground fundraising committee are questioning why theP.E.I. government doesn'thelpout with the purchasing of new equipment.

The committee is raising money to purchase new equipment for the Summerside school's playground.Currently, it has raised $70,000 and hopes to raise more than $100,000.

But,none of that money has come from the province.

In 2018 the province deemed the current playground structures at Elm Street School to be unsafe. To make the structures safe for children temporarily,boards on bridges were replaced and barriers were erected on gaps between walkways and railings to prevent children from falling through.

The structureswill be removed in 2020.

"When we found out from the province that the play structures were not safe and were coming out, we then learned that the province does not give money to play structures,"said Emily McKeown a member of the playground fundraising committee.

"The actual purchasing of the equipment is not done through the province at all. There's no dollars that come from there."

In an email, a spokesperson from the Department of Educationsaid funding of playground equipment has always fallen to school communities. The provinceassists in the preparation of land, installation of equipment and helpsschools acquire grants to make the purchase more affordable.

But, McKeown said governmentshould be doing more.

"The importance of outdoor play and playing together and, you know, all the life lessons that happen on the playground, I just think you can't dismiss it," she said.

"I sort of feel like the province is sort of dismissing that, which is, I think, a failure to our kids."

'Play structures are really critical'

Once the playgrounds have been installed, school boards take ownership and responsibility for them throughout their life cycle, according to the government spokesperson. After the installation, the province continually monitors the safety of the structures.

McKeown said she thinks the equipment was last replaced in the 1980s. The equipment is worn and tagged withgraffiti.

"We're constantly updating our own lives, safety wise," she said. "The play structures is the same concept right? That these are no longer safe in the same way a vehicle built in 1980 wouldn't have the same safety features as a vehicle built in 2019."

Currently the school has four play structuresand all will be removed. The committee hopes to raise enough money to replace them.

"Play structures are really critical to the development of our kids," said McKeown.

If the committee doesn't reach itsfundraising goal new equipment will still be purchased, butthey won't be able to replace all four structures.

They also hope to upgrade some playground equipment to be more accessible.

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