Category: Accessible Swing

Jeffery Park

7/15/2023

Area: Central Whitby

Age Range: 18months+

Parking: large parking lot off of Jeffery Street

Ground Cover: mulch

Main Equipment:

4 infant swings
2 accessible bucket swings
2 swings
3 slides
2 climbers
2 sand diggers
ship with navigational tools

Accessibility Features: 2 bucket swings, musical instrument stations, play ship with navigational tools, sand digger

Facilities/Other:

Jeffery Park Splash Pad
seasonal portable washroom
basketball court
soccer pitch
field

Surrounding Park Area: Surrounded by large fields and connected to walking paths this is another great park to keep you entertained all day

Seating: 4 benches around the playground, very long concrete bench surrounding one corner of the playground space by the accessible swings, 3 two person picnic tables under the shade sail by the splash pad

Shade: shade sail over the splash pad picnic tables, there could be a shade sail over the sandpit (the posts were there when we visited, but the sail was missing)

Overall assessment: A new favourite themed park for us because of the amount of creative ship play! The number of navigational features and unique creative play elements incorporated to make this ship part of the entire structure allows more than one or two kids to interactive with this creative play theme! Add to this the awesome splash pad, splash pad run off creek, and surrounding fields and you've got yourself an entire day outing in one place! The portable washroom is a bit hard to see (as it is on the other side of the parking lot from the splash pad and playground) but it is a big bonus to have parks with washrooms in our minds.

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Sandy Hawley Park

4/29/2022

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Area: North Oshawa (2500 Kentucky Derby Way, Oshawa, ON)

Age Range: toddler and up

Parking: small parking lot with 5 stalls plus 2 accessible stalls

Ground Cover: mulch

Main Equipment:

3 slides
1 swing
1 bucket swing
1 infant swing
3 spinners
1 teeter rocker
1 giant climbing boulder
1 musical station
1 farm gate sales stand (ok we made that up, but it is a great pretend play barn!)

Accessibility Features: music station, bucket swing

Facilities/Other:

Sandy Hawley splash pad
half basketball court
soccer pitch with 2 long team benches

Surrounding Park Area: A small green space in front of the park, and a bike lock station

Seating: 3 covered picnic tables between the playground and splash pad, 2 park benches by the half basketball court, and two long metal team benches behind the playground in the soccer pitch

Shade: none over the playground

Overall assessment: A cool new themed park based on the old Windfield Farm site (neat fact; the climbing boulder was original to the old Windfield Farm and was incorporated into this playground design). The kids loved the barn 'loft' and the really steep racing slides. They look steep but don't go quite as fast as you'd expect. One of the neat features we haven't seen very often anymore is a climbing ramp with rope to pull yourself up. It uses all kinds of coordination and muscles! They've already asked to go back to the 'farm playground' so I guess the theme was a hit!

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Portage Park

7/22/2018

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Area: South Whitby

Age Range: infant and up

Parking: small parking lot off of Portage Trail (intersecting with Channel Drive)

Ground Cover: mulch on the larger playground, rubber surface for the toddler playground -NEW as of 2018! (previously they were both sand)

Main Equipment:

5 slides
5 swings (1 saucer swing)
2 infant swings
4 teeter rockers
2 sitting spinners
1 inclusive spinner
2 accessible stations (1 arm bike, 1 vehicle station)

Accessibility Features: saucer swing, inclusive spinner, sitting spinner, accessible stations - NEW as of 2018! (previously there were no accessible features)

Facilities/Other:

see Portage Park Splash Pad post
1 Baseball Diamond (lit)
1 Soccer Pitch
1 Basketball half court
seasonal washrooms (portable - from May to first week of October, 9am to 9 pm) in the parking lot

Surrounding Park Area: green spaces, fields, and large shady trees

Seating: three benches facing the playgrounds and splash pad in the shade pavilion, two benches at half court basketball, bleachers at ball diamond

Shade: none over the playground, shade pavilion over the three benches, some shade in the surrounding trees

Overall assessment: Enjoy a day trip to this park complete with splash pad, plenty of picnic spots (bring your own blanket), and seasonal washrooms. There is more than enough parking to meet up with friends, play tag through the trees, half court basketball, or baseball. 2018 UPDATE: this is now one of our favourite toddler parks because the smaller playground is all on a rubber ground covering! I am also excited with the new accessible features that have been added to the playground. The kids love spinning themselves on the inclusive spinner (the big green 'thing' that you will see a video of below). We hope you enjoy this newly renovated park as much as we do now!

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Lakeside Neighborhood Park

7/19/2018

2 Comments

Area: Southeast Ajax

Age Range: 5yrs and up (it's a bit more intermediate)

Parking: some street parking on Audley Rd S / Hoile Drive (they merge around the curve right in front of this park)

Ground Cover: mulch

Main Equipment:

1 slide
3 swings (1 bucket style, 1 saucer style)
2 hammocks
1 climbing rope structure
2 blue rock climbing walls
2 standing spinners
music station

Accessibility Features: music station, hammocks, bucket and saucer swings

Facilities/Other:

close to Carruthers Marsh Splash Pad and Ashbury Park (5-8min walk away)
also almost beside the Waterfront Trail Parkette swings

Surrounding Park Area: A small green space around the playground, right on the Ajax Waterfront Trail

Seating: 2 benches right beside the park, large rock retaining wall structure around the playground, and several benches in the area along the Ajax Waterfront Trail

Shade: none over the playground, some shade in the surrounding trees along the waterfront

Overall assessment: This park was built for obstacle course racing! It has two standing spinners that act as great starting points for a team race through the playground. The saucer swing is amazing as it has a beautiful view of the lake off in the distance to the West. Maybe you can catch a sunset here? The best part is that there are more swings across the field behind the park at the Waterfront Trail Parkette, and it's just a few minutes walk away from Ashbury Park and the Carruthers Marsh Splash Pad!

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Lakeside School Park

9/2/2017

1 Comment

Area: Southwest Ajax

Age Range: 2yrs and up

Parking: large parking lot off of Parkes Drive at Farrow Cres

Ground Cover: mulch

Main Equipment:

4 metal slides
2 swings
2 infant swings
2 accessible bucket swings
1 rope climber
1 hanging umbrella spinner (see video below)
1 double teeter rocker
1 single rocker

Accessibility Features: two bucket swings

Facilities/Other:

1 soccer pitch
2 basketball half courts (at the public school/community centre)
seasonal washroom (portable)

Surrounding Park Area: A small green space beside the park with connecting Ajax trails

Seating: 2 park benches facing the playground

Shade: some over the swings and umbrella spinner, and surrounding tree shade behind the playground

Overall assessment: It is so much fun finding a brand new playground with new equipment we have never seen before! The hanging umbrella spinner is so much fun for older kids who can reach themselves, or younger ones that just need a lift and initial spin (with a little help down too after getting dizzy).