Response 3992339

Response to request for information

Reference

3992339

Response date

12 May 2026

Request

I am writing to request information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. Please provide the following information for the period 1 January 2020 to present:

1. Inspections and maintenance
   • The total number of playground inspections carried out per year. 
   • Copies of any inspection guidance, checklists, or policies used, particularly those referencing: 
     • corrosion 
     • rust 
     • metal degradation
2. Recorded defects
   • The number of recorded maintenance issues or defects relating to playground equipment, broken down by year.
   • Where available, the number of defects specifically categorised as:
     • corrosion
     • rust
     • structural degradation of metal components
3. Complaints from the public
   • The number of complaints received relating to playground equipment described as:
     • rusty
     • corroded
     • damaged or unsafe
4. Incidents and injuries
   • The number of reported incidents or accidents in council-managed playgrounds, per year.
   • If recorded, the number of incidents where equipment condition (e.g. damage, corrosion, or wear) was noted as a contributing factor.
5. Maintenance response
   • Any policies or service standards relating to:
     • repair timeframes for damaged or corroded equipment
     • criteria for removing unsafe equipment from use 

Response

I am writing to request information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. Please provide the following information for the period 1 January 2020 to present:

1. Inspections and maintenance
   • The total number of playground inspections carried out per year.

2022 - 460
2023 - 991
2024 - 940
2025 - 836
2026 - 102 

• • Copies of any inspection guidance, checklists, or policies used, particularly those referencing: 
    • corrosion 
    • rust 
    • metal degradation

We use our RPii training when we inspect all playgrounds inspections. Playground inspections are primarily governed by the BS EN 1176 standards (for equipment).

2. Recorded defects
   • The number of recorded maintenance issues or defects relating to playground equipment, broken down by year.

2022 - 206
2023 - 385
2024 - 286
2025 - 132
2026 – 19

• • Where available, the number of defects specifically categorised as:
    • corrosion
    • rust
    • structural degradation of metal components

Not Available

3. Complaints from the public
   • • The number of complaints received relating to playground equipment described as:
       • rusty
       • corroded
       • damaged or unsafe

Zero

4. Incidents and injuries
   • • The number of reported incidents or accidents in council-managed playgrounds, per year.

2023 - 1
2024 - 3
2025 - 2
2026 - Zero

• • If recorded, the number of incidents where equipment condition (e.g. damage, corrosion, or wear) was noted as a contributing factor. 

Zero

5. Maintenance response
   • Any policies or service standards relating to:
   • repair timeframes for damaged or corroded equipment
   • criteria for removing unsafe equipment from use 

Our playground inspectors are qualified after completing a Register of Play Inspectors International training. Playground inspections are primarily governed by the BS EN 1176 standards (for equipment). 

We try to complete all repairs as soon as we can, however it is not possible every time due to the waiting time for the parts. 

We normally remove the unsafe equipment from use after we have completed a risk assessment, and we have decided that it needs to be removed due to the health and safety of the public.