The claimant (child) was travelling across a bridge in the playground and fell through a confined space causing a broken femur, cuts and bruises. The claimant alleged that the playground was unsafe and had design flaws that didn’t prevent children from injuring themselves.
The City had contracted out the design and construction of the playground, which is common for local governments to do. At the time of construction, the playground was assessed to have met the required standards and guidelines being:
Every month the City comprehensively inspects the playground to identify any issues.
The City also installed signage to warn members of the public of the general risks of the playground and related activities (i.e. a general warning to parents) in this specific situation the signage provided the following:
The 2024 WA Local Government Convention over 8 to 10 October was an excellent opportunity to chat with members and talk about the issues that matter to you. Over 650 delegates attended from across the state and we appreciated the effort many made to seek out our team to provide feedback and ask questions.
Members are once again asking questions about fire safety for e-bikes, e-scooters and other light electric vehicles (LEV), alongside the installation of EV charging stations. This is an evolving risk area and members should consider the developing situation.
2023/24 proved an interesting year for the LGIS scheme and our members. There have been inflationary pressures, labour markets have been tight and skilled workers difficult to find, the workforce is ageing, and there has been substantial legislative change including the Local Government Act and a brand-new Workers Compensation and Injury Management Act.
LGIS considered a range of factors – in particular that playgrounds in general have a risk versus reward environment which essentially means, a playground aims to manage a balance between the need to offer risk and the need to keep children safe from serious harm.
Not all play involves risk taking, but there are positive benefits of risky play. Paradoxically, there is a possibility that children exposed to too little challenge may take inappropriate risks, where the chance of injury is high, because they lack the ability to judge risk levels and lack skills to tackle it.
A pivotal aspect of balancing this need to provide children with new experiences and risk and the need to keep children safe, is the reliance upon adult supervision to enhance a safer environment, to ensure an optimal learning experience. The playground in question had signage advising that parent supervision was required.
Signage at the entrance to the playground clearly describes what activities and equipment are placed in each area, allowing adults to choose the area that best reflects their child’s abilities.
Considering all of the above LGIS found that:
Ultimately the City was not liable and the claim was successfully defended on behalf of the member.
The defence is this case was strong because
The recent WA Local Government Convention was an excellent opportunity to chat with members and talk about the issues that matter to you. LGIS also appreciated the invitation from WALGA to provide members with an update at their AGM on our 2023/24 results and achievements. For more information, our end of financial year reports, A Year in Review and Annual Financial Report, are now available on the LGIS website or you can read the article on page 18.
By their very nature playgrounds have an element of risk, designed to challenge children and deliver development opportunities. They’re valued and sought-after amenities in every local government area across Western Australia. They also come with high levels of expectation from the community that they will be well designed, in appropriate locations and maintained in a condition that ensures safe and enjoyable experiences for children
The claimant (child) was travelling across a bridge in the playground and fell through a confined space causing a broken femur, cuts and bruises. The claimant alleged that the playground was unsafe and had design flaws that didn’t prevent children from injuring themselves.
LGIS is the unifying name for the dedicated suite of risk financing and management services for WA local governments, established by the WA Local Government Association in conjunction with JLT Public Sector (part of the Marsh group of companies). LGIS is managed by JLT Public Sector (ABN 69 009 098 864 AFS Licence 226827).
Risk Matters, via this website, is designed to keep members, their staff and elected members informed on topical risk management and insurance issues and LGIS programs and services.
