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Drainage for playgrounds and sports pitches
An effective drainage system will help to prolong the lifetime of your site.
Why is playground drainage important?
The right drainage system will keep your site safe, prolong its life and ensure its usable throughout the year. A lack of regular sports pitch maintenance can lead to damage, and old surfaces are prone to flooding issues due to the long-term effect water has on surface materials. Whether you have an older site that needs a complete overhaul, or a new park or sports pitch that isn’t performing as you’d hope, we can propose a solution to get your site back on track.
The effects of an ineffective drainage solution
You may not notice the impact of ineffective drainage straight away, but over time, a flooded area that has frozen and remained waterlogged will quickly render your site unusable. An effective drainage solution should keep your site accessible throughout the year, regardless of the weather conditions. Here are the issues that you may face:
- Bacterial growth and mould
- Deformation of surface materials
- Risk of slipping and injury to users
- Loose materials and debris
- Waterlogged, flooded areas
- Inaccessible site that has to be closed
Our drainage process
We have varying solutions depending on your unique site and the issues you’re experiencing. We’ll undertake a site visit to understand your current system, the damage that has been caused, the root of the issue and the most effective solution for your site. You’ll be advised on whether any structural or groundworks need to be completed to accommodate your new drainage system. If your play or sports area has flooded and become damaged beyond use, we have a range of refurbishment or full design and installation services available.
Drainage sites
We offer drainage solutions for a variety of play areas and sports pitches from new solutions to refurbishment and maintenance.
Playgrounds
Playgrounds are a large part of the school experience; they provide space and equipment for children to develop physical and social skills. A flooded playground can be hazardous and restrict the play space available to children during their lunchtimes and as part of the school curriculum.
Learn MoreParks
Parks offer a public space for locals to relax and enjoy the equipment on offer. They’ll be used by parents, children and everyone in between. Parks are usually located within grassy areas meaning they’re prone to flooding without appropriate flood management.
Learn MoreSports Pitches
Artificial pitches can be prone to flooding if they’re not properly maintained; the material that makes up 3g and 4g pitches can become blocked over time, leading to a waterlogged pitch. We have a range of solutions for MUGA & artificial sports pitches to revive them to their playable state.
Learn MoreInclusive Play
We specialise in creating inclusive play areas, either as a new project or an update to your current solution. It's especially important to control drainage for inclusive play areas as flooding in these areas can have even more of an impact on the accessibility of your space to those with disabilities.
Learn MoreDrainage solutions
We’ll adapt our approach to your drainage system depending on the site and surroundings. We follow the Floods and Water Management Act 2010 and focus on a sustainable approach. We can advise you on the specific options relating to your site after attending a site visit. Here are some of the solutions we offer for drainage:
- Slit drains - These are narrower excavated drains without pipes and normally 50mm wide, backfilled with stone aggregate and topped with coarse sand to the surface. The depth is 250 to 300mm.
- Swales - These are constructed linear depressions to divert surface water flow. They are installed with suitable gradient and side slopes of around 1:8, with a depth of around 200mm. Preferably pipe drainage is installed in the invert of the swale.
For surfaces that are either solid or loose-filled in construction with subbases, rubberised fall protection systems, or loose-fill aggregates/play bark chippings, we offer the following options:
- Rubber Scrub - This cleaning system unclogs detritus filled pores which are stopping the rubberised surface from allowing water to drain through.
- French drain - A French drain or weeping tile (also trench drain, filter drain, blind drain, rubble drain, rock drain, drain tile, perimeter drain, land drain, French ditch, subsurface drain, sub-soil drain or agricultural drain) is a trench filled with gravel or rock or containing a perforated pipe that redirects surface water and groundwater away from an area. A French drain can have perforated hollow pipes along the bottom to quickly vent water that seeps down through the upper gravel or rock.
- Soakaways - A soakaway is simply a hole dug into the ground, filled with rubble and coarse stone which allows surface water to percolate back into the earth close to where it falls.
- Clean stone - Clean stone aggregate has no fines or dust. It is ideal for land drainage, soakaways and larger pipe backfill.
Contact us to discuss your drainage requirements
We’ll understand your current solution and the cause of any drainage issues you may be experiencing. From here, we can advise you on the best approach to bring your site back in working order.
The UK's outdoor sport & play specialist
