Similar to the growing number of inclusive classrooms in our New York City public schools, we believe it is imperative for our playgrounds to reflect the same philosophy, specifically that all children with different abilities benefit from learning and playing with one another. Moreover, accessibility describes having the ability to physically enter a space, but inclusivity allows all children to participate and engage with one another. We are striving to accomplish both accessibility and inclusivity for this playground project, because without accessibility we cannot have inclusivity and vice versa.
According to NYC’s Department of City Planning, there are 26,643 children under age 14 in Manhattan Community Board 7 and only one playground considered “accessible for all children”. In assessing potential sites, it is therefore important to consider issues related to children’s needs and public access since our intention is for the playground to serve the entire community.
This project supports the Manhattan Community Board 7 Health and Human Services Committee’s priorities for the FY2015 NYC expense budget, which lists out-of-school time access to playgrounds as a priority.