Posted By Phil Rose
OMG, I fear I am going to be a lone voice in the dark here. I can sympathise with the Councils on this one. There are a number of risks (mentioned) that are related to sand pits and they are 'awkward' risks to manage with the increasingly limited resources that Councils have to play with. I wonder if this is reflected in the fact that only 2 per cent of playgrounds have them? The fact is that no parent would be happy for their children to play in a sand pit full of cat poo, or containing broken glass, needles etc and in reality managing those risks out of a sandpit does require resources that many Councils might reasonably argue isn't justifiable.

Posted By Graham Bullough
Phil - You aren't alone on this one. You've listed some good reasons why many local councils probably haven't had sandpits at public play areas for years. Here are one or two more for good measure: It's difficult to keep the sand clean from leaves and general litter, as well as any faeces left concealed by local moggies. Also it's foreseeable that some people might think the sand is worth pinching.

Though I've worked for a local authority for over 20 years and sometimes visit its parks and play areas, I can't remember ever having seen seen any sand pits during such visits. However, I can report that most if not all of my employer's school nurseries tend to have sand pit facilities. The external ones these days tend to be plastic ones which sit on the ground and are kept covered by proprietary lids when not actually in use. Such lids generally counter the problems which affect sand pits in public play areas. The same goes for plastic sandpits which parents can buy for their kids to use in gardens or yards.

Also each school nursery classroom usually has an indoor sand pit type facility comprising a large strong plastic tray mounted on some sort of frame with castors. Thus the children can enjoy playing with sand and water whatever the season or weather. Some of the sand and water invariably escapes from such trays during use, so nursery staff need to be vigilant for adjacent slippery floors and deal with significant spillages.

Talking of sand and water I used to enjoy playing with both during holiday visits to beaches as a kid and confess I still do sometimes when the opportunity arises. Mind you, I'm very choosy about beaches because I've always thought making sand castles is downright boring. Good beaches in my opinion need at least one stream flowing over them, suitable for damming and diverting by means of channels dug with a piece of available driftwood. Perhaps, this reflects some sort of unfulfilled ambition to be a hydrologist or civil engineer. Well, that's my excuse when I find a good beach! By the way, are there any other ageing beach stream dammers out there?

Posted By Bob Shillabeer
Sand pits are a thing that has fallen into disuse as has been stated by those who abuse drugs and that alone presents a greater risk than anything. Add to that the risk from animal activity and I for one would not want my grandchildren playing in a public sandpit. There is no emotion in this as the answer is quite easy, buy them thier own that can be properly managed by the parents. I don't blame the council at all it is one of the very rare examples of them taking the correct action.