Choosing playground equipment for schools and nurseries should be fairly straight forward.

However, with loads of options to choose from on the market, including making the choice between hardwearing plastic and wood, wondering if the products are durable enough to stand boisterous play and long lasting enough to be an investment of precious school or nursery funds means it can be a bit of a headache for head teachers and school business managers alike.

Here at Discovering Days however we are very pleased to say we can answer all of your questions about choosing wooden play equipment for schools and nurseries, because it’s our lifeblood.

Our wooden play equipment is lovingly handcrafted and will make a perfect focus piece for any playground.

Want to find out more? Read on.

 Wooden Equipment or Plastic?

There’s been a lot in the news recently about the IPCC reports and the climate emergency affecting our natural, global environments; and it seems there isn’t much time to explore credible alternatives to the way we live our lives so it’s time we all tried to do our bit!

Reducing our use of plastic is definitely one way we can have an impact.

Plastic is a derivative of oil and is used in virtually everything around us! It is also particularly bad for the environment as less than 10% of the world’s plastic is actually recycled and can take up to 400 years to biodegrade! (Which it never fully does anyway, it just breaks down in to smaller and smaller particles).

So, anything we can do to reduce our use of plastic has to be a good thing!

But wait we hear you say, surely, it’s just as bad chopping down lots of trees, just to make children’s wooden toys?

Well let us reassure you straight away, all of the wood we use for our superb play equipment comes from sustainable sources, in particular we use Scandinavian Redwood, a timber that is fast growing and typically takes just 25 years to reach maturity.

Which is good for the environment in more ways than one, as the process of planting, felling and deforestation is not only minimal, but the constant regrowth encourages lots of new wildlife to the forest area. Whereas an Oak tree by comparison can take 60 years to reach maturity.

So, by choosing wooden playground equipment for your school or nursery you are definitely making a more ecological choice, plus it’s a great way of teaching the children about environmental issues from a young age.

Early Years Play Equipment

Another part of choosing wooden playground equipment for your school or nursery has to focus on what actual benefits the equipment brings to the children and their learning progress.

Here at Discovering Days our wooden playground equipment is designed and built very much with this in mind.

We have an extensive range suitable for Early Years play which encourages children to develop their creativity and their sense of adventure from a young age.

In addition, our Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 Equipment is equally wide-ranging. With products such as the Windsor Large Mud Kitchen or the Construction Workbench children can foster good interpersonal skills as well as problem solving and overall dexterity.

The exclusive seated wooden play hut on the other hand, is great for encouraging children to sit and have group discussion, teaching children the skills to listen to their peers and wait their turn to articulate their views, whether this is about the latest bugs they’ve found in the wooden planters or what’s the best thing in their lunch box!    

Playground Toys Built to Last

One final thing to consider before parting with precious school funds is how long will your new playground equipment last?

Good quality, playground toys need to be built to withstand some fairly robust play, and not only do they come in for some heavy usage, they have to be suitably treated to endure the British weather too!

Each one of our superior wooden playground toys is built in our workshop with expertise and attention to detail and can undergo even the most rigorous of childhood playtimes

The manufacturing process involves futureproofing the wood with the latest in technologically advanced wood preservatives to ensure the timber can withstand the harshest of winters, meaning your new wooden playground equipment can take centre stage for years to come!

Contact Us

So, if you are considering choosing some new wooden playground equipment for your school or nursery we hope by reading this blog it has given you some insight in to what should influence your buying decisions.

And if you have any more questions for example how to order a bespoke piece or payment methods, why not take a look at our FAQs for more information.

And If you are still unsure, or you want to speak to us about a particular piece in our product range, you can contact us here or call us on 01282 416 755 where one of our expert team will be delighted to speak to you!

We are sure once you choose your wooden playground equipment from us you will be coming back for different pieces year after year!