Item - 2017.PE21.4

The Parks and Environment Committee received the report (August 23, 2017) from the General Manager, Parks, Forestry and Recreation for information.

The purpose of this report is to respond to the request from the Parks and Environment Committee to review opportunities to build/implement adventure playgrounds in City of Toronto parks.

An adventure playground is a specific type of supervised playground where children are permitted to build and alter their own play environment using materials provided on site.  Adventure playgrounds have existed in some countries - notably Denmark, the United Kingdom and Germany - since the mid-1940s, and there is currently some resurgence in interest in the potential benefits to children that they can provide.

Research indicates that adventure playgrounds can be beneficial to the healthy physical, emotional and social development of the children who use them.  This report suggests that Parks, Forestry and Recreation continue to engage with organizations such as Earth Day Canada to see if an appropriate model of adventure playground can be developed.