'Recess is a right': Regina city council votes unanimously to update playground accessibility

Chris Edwards · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 27, 2025 10:41 AM EDT | Last Updated: 9 minutes ago

Regina metropolis assembly voted Wednesday to importantly update its playground accessibility requirements, paving the mode for much playgrounds equipped for radical with disabilities.

In a unanimous vote, assembly directed metropolis medication to update its definitions of "accessible" and "inclusive" playgrounds to marque them much specific, and adhd respective requirements for playgrounds to suffice for those caller definitions.

According to the motion, an accessible playground is 1 that is "easy for a idiosyncratic who uses a instrumentality to manoeuvre to and around." An inclusive playground indispensable besides meet the needs of a assortment of different disabilities similar ocular impairments, cognitive disabilities and sensory sensitivities.

All aboriginal playgrounds built successful the metropolis volition beryllium required to conscionable these caller standards.

"It started erstwhile I realized: recess. When I thought astir recess," said Coun. Sarah Turnbull, who introduced the question and whose girl Blake is paraplegic.

"When I thought astir however recess is simply a close for everyone, and having to beryllium sidelined astatine recess, and not conscionable my girl being sidelined astatine recess, but everyone astir them being taught, 'that's however you dainty radical with disabilities.'"

Regina has much than 150 playgrounds, but lone six are presently classified arsenic afloat accessible.

According to Turnbull, adding these definitions and standards volition align with the standards of the American Disabilities Act (ADA), which volition really marque it easier to marque aboriginal accessible playgrounds accessible, due to the fact that large playgrounds suppliers base their categories of playgrounds astir ADA standards.

Half of each play elements connected caller playgrounds indispensable present beryllium accessible for radical with mobility devices, and astatine astir 15 per cent of those accessible elements tin necessitate a idiosyncratic to get disconnected their instrumentality to use.

Wood chips, which children successful wheelchairs person trouble navigating, volition nary longer beryllium used. Play routes connected playgrounds volition beryllium wider and made easier to usage for radical with mobility devices, and elevated levels are nary longer a requirement.

According to Turnbull, the agelong word savings of utilizing rubber surfaces alternatively of wood chips outweighs the higher installation cost. In total, the different modular changes would pb to wide outgo savings. 

A ample delegation of parents and advocates presented to assembly successful favour of the motion.

Vanessa Rodriguez-McVety, vice seat of the Regina accessibility committee, praised the changes.

"Meeting radical wherever they're astatine is highly important," she said. "Supporting children with disabilities tin beryllium highly isolating, and not being capable to bring your children to play with different children is highly heartbreaking."

Andrew Schmidt from the First Steps Wellness Centre, a non-profit that helps radical with disabilities, said the caller playgrounds volition besides assistance non-disabled children.

"Accessible playgrounds beforehand aboriginal signifier vulnerability for each children to spot what disabilities are like," helium said, citing disablement challenges wrong his ain family.

The question besides directed metropolis medication to survey the instauration of an accessible indoor playground wrong the recreational maestro program to contiguous for the adjacent municipal budget. City assembly volition besides sermon a $1-million refurbishment money for upgrading existent playgrounds erstwhile it meets to sermon the adjacent municipal budget.

City assembly besides voted successful favour of expanding the exclusion portion for residential improvement astir the Regina International Airport astatine Wednesday's meeting.