Does playground equipment need a PUWER inspection?
Usually not - PUWER covers equipment used for 'work', and HSE says it doesn’t apply to equipment provided for the public, so children at play aren’t covered. Your duty comes from the Health and Safety at Work Act and the Occupiers’ Liability Acts. Most schools and councils meet it by following BS EN 1176: regular checks plus an independent annual inspection.
I get asked about playground equipment by schools, care homes, pubs and managing agents, and the question is nearly always the same. “Does our play area need a PUWER inspection?” It’s a fair question, because the PUWER page on most inspection websites, mine included, lists playground equipment. So here’s the straight answer, and what you actually need to do.
Why PUWER doesn’t usually apply
PUWER, the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998, covers equipment provided for use at work, or used at work. A child on a climbing frame isn’t at work.
HSE’s code of practice for PUWER says so directly. If you provide equipment “as part of a work activity for use by members of the public”, you don’t have duties under PUWER. HSE’s examples are the air line on a garage forecourt and lifts used by shoppers. Play equipment used by pupils, residents’ grandchildren or customers’ children falls in the same group.
PUWER can still come into it at the edges. If your staff use equipment at work to maintain the play area, such as a leaf blower, a pressure washer or a ladder, those are covered. But the swings and slides themselves aren’t PUWER equipment while children are playing on them. If you want the full picture of who PUWER covers, see PUWER regulations explained.
So what law does apply?
Two pieces of law, and neither of them sets an inspection schedule:
The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, section 3. If you’re an employer, such as a school, a care home, a pub or a hotel, you have to run your business so that people who aren’t your employees aren’t exposed to risks to their health or safety, so far as is reasonably practicable. That includes children using your play area. The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 add the duty to carry out a risk assessment that covers them.
The Occupiers’ Liability Acts 1957 and 1984. These are civil law. If you occupy the land, you owe a duty of care to visitors, and to a lesser extent to people who shouldn’t be there. The 1957 Act says an occupier “must be prepared for children to be less careful than adults”. If a child is hurt and a claim follows, you’ll need to show you took reasonable care. Inspection records are the main way you do that.
HSE is also clear that play shouldn’t be wrapped in cotton wool. Its joint statement with the Play Safety Forum says the goal “is not to eliminate risk, but to weigh up the risks and benefits”, and that you should focus on real risks, not paperwork. A good inspection regime does exactly that. It finds the broken weld and the worn chain, not the fact that a slide is high.
How often should playground equipment be inspected?
There’s no legal schedule, so the benchmark everyone uses is the British and European Standard BS EN 1176, part 7 of which covers installation, inspection, maintenance and operation. It recommends three levels of inspection. Schools, councils and insurers across the UK work to it.
Inspection | How often | Who usually does it | What it covers |
Routine visual inspection | Daily to weekly, depending on how busy the site is and how much vandalism it gets | A trained member of staff, such as a caretaker or site manager | Obvious hazards: broken parts, missing fixings, litter and glass, damaged surfacing, gates and fencing |
Operational inspection | Every one to three months, or as the manufacturer recommends | A trained member of staff or a contractor | A closer, recorded check of how the equipment works, its stability and wear on moving parts |
Annual main inspection | At least once every 12 months | An independent, qualified inspector | Overall safety, foundations, structure, surfacing and fall heights, and a risk-rated list of what needs doing |
After an incident or damage | As soon as possible, before the equipment is used again | A competent person | The damaged equipment and anything around it that may have been affected |
The standard isn’t retrospective. Older equipment may have been built to an earlier standard, such as BS 5696, and that doesn’t automatically make it unsafe. The annual inspector will look at it on its merits.
Your surfacing matters as much as the equipment. BS EN 1177 covers impact-absorbing surfaces and how far children can safely fall onto them. Worn bark, compacted sand and rubber tiles lifting at the edges are some of the most common defects on any report.
What the annual inspection should cover
A proper annual main inspection goes well beyond a look round. Expect the inspector to check:
foundations and anchoring, including digging down where corrosion or rot is likely
structure: welds, joints, timber rot, corrosion and cracking
moving parts: bearings, chains, shackles, swing seats and wear on anything that pivots or rotates
entrapment points for heads, fingers and clothing, measured against the standard
fall heights and surfacing under and around each item
free space around each item, so children using one piece can’t collide with another
access and barriers: ladders, steps, handrails and guardrails
fencing, gates and signage, including self-closing gates on toddler areas
You should get a written report, with each defect risk-rated, so you know what to fix first.
Who should carry out the inspections?
Routine and operational checks can be done by your own people, as long as they’re trained and know what to look for. A caretaker or site manager is the usual choice. Keep a simple record of every check, even when nothing’s wrong.
The annual main inspection should be done by someone independent and suitably qualified. The recognised qualification is registration with the Register of Play Inspectors International (RPII), and many insurers and councils ask for an RPII-registered inspector. Check your insurance policy before you book anyone.
Who’s responsible?
Whoever controls the play area:
Schools: the employer, which depends on the type of school. For community and voluntary controlled schools that’s usually the local authority, and for academies and free schools it’s the academy trust. The headteacher and site team usually run the day-to-day checks.
Care homes, pubs, hotels and holiday parks: the business that runs the site.
Blocks of flats and private estates: the freeholder or residents’ management company, often through a managing agent.
Parks and public play areas: usually the council or parish council.
If the play area is shared, or you lease the land, put in writing who does each level of inspection and who pays for repairs. That stops anything being missed.
What about outdoor gyms, inflatables and adventure play?
Outdoor gym equipment in parks has its own standard, BS EN 16630, with its own inspection and maintenance requirements. Indoor gym equipment that staff use at work is a different case. See my post on gym equipment inspections.
Bouncy castles and other inflatables have their own inspection schemes, PIPA and ADIPS, and should come with a current test certificate when you hire them.
Climbing walls, zip wires and adventure equipment are often used by staff as well as visitors, so PUWER and the Work at Height Regulations may apply too.
Play area checks across the East Midlands
I’m based in Nottingham and work with schools, care homes, hospitality businesses and managing agents across Nottingham, the Midlands and further afield in the UK. If your site has a play area, it often has a lift, a platform lift, a hoist or gates too, and I can usually look at those on the same visit. See my pages for schools, care homes and pubs, hotels and hospitality.
How I work:
I carry out and sign every inspection myself. I’ve been doing this for 14 years.
PULO doesn’t sell, install or repair equipment, so there’s no reason for me to find faults that aren’t there.
You get a reminder before each inspection is due.
Once I’ve quoted, the price is fixed for all your ongoing inspections.
PULO holds ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001, and CHAS Advanced.
A simple weekly check you can start today
If you don’t have a routine check in place, this only takes a few minutes. Write down the date, who checked, and what you found, even if it’s “nothing”:
Walk the boundary. Are the fence and gates intact, and do self-closing gates shut by themselves?
Clear the surface. Pick up glass, litter, dog mess and anything sharp.
Look at the surfacing. Has bark or sand been kicked away from under swings and slides? Are any tiles lifting?
Push and pull each item. Does anything rock, creak or move where it shouldn’t?
Check swing seats, chains and shackles for wear, and that nothing is twisted round the top bar.
Look for missing bolt caps, sharp edges, splinters and broken boards.
If something could cause serious injury, close that item off with a barrier and a sign, and report it straight away.
Frequently asked questions
Does playground equipment need a PUWER inspection?
Usually not. PUWER covers equipment used for work, and children playing are not at work. HSE says PUWER does not apply to equipment provided for the public to use. The duty to keep a play area safe comes from the Health and Safety at Work Act and the Occupiers’ Liability Acts instead.
Is there a law that says playground equipment must be inspected?
No law sets an inspection schedule for play equipment. The law requires you to keep children and other visitors reasonably safe, and regular inspections are how you show you have done that. The British Standard BS EN 1176 sets out the inspection regime most schools, councils and insurers follow.
How often should playground equipment be inspected?
BS EN 1176-7 recommends three levels: a routine visual check daily to weekly, an operational inspection every one to three months, and an annual main inspection by an independent, qualified inspector. Busy or vandalised sites need more frequent routine checks.
Who is responsible for playground safety at a school?
The employer, which depends on the type of school. For community and voluntary controlled schools it is usually the local authority, and for academies and free schools it is the academy trust. Day-to-day management normally falls to the headteacher and site staff.
What is the RPII?
The Register of Play Inspectors International is a register of qualified play inspectors. Many insurers and councils expect the annual main inspection to be carried out by an RPII-registered inspector, so check your policy before booking one.
Is BS EN 1176 a legal requirement?
No. BS EN 1176 is a British and European Standard, not a law, and it is not retrospective, so older equipment may have been built to an earlier standard. HSE describes standards such as EN 1176 as benchmarks, and following it is the clearest way to show you have met your duty of care.
Do outdoor gyms in parks follow the same rules?
Outdoor fitness equipment in parks has its own standard, BS EN 16630, which includes its own inspection and maintenance requirements. Equipment indoors in a staffed gym is a different case, because staff use it at work and PUWER applies to that use.
What should I do if I find a defect on play equipment?
If it could cause serious injury, close the equipment straight away with barriers and a sign, and get it repaired or removed. Record what you found, what you did and when. Lower-risk defects can be logged and put right within a set time.
Comments