To not get any sort of large garden toy

[lecce]

Sorry this is so dull but it is on my mind as neighbours have just installed a huge slide/swing/cabin-combo as well as the trampoline they already had. This has been noted by the dc.

These things all cost a bomb and I am unsure whether we would ever get our money's worth. We have two decent parks with a variety of play equipment within easy walking distance, as well as loads of countryside we can walk to from the house. We get out and about all the time to various places with adventure playgrounds etc so they have plenty of access to playground equipment of various kinds.

And yet...I look out of my bedroom window and most of the gardens have a trampoline, a swing, a slide - often more than one item. Some houses must be childless, so the vast majority of families have these things, right? Are they worth it?

We could afford to get something but money isn't limitless and I would feel mightily pissed off if it sat there ruining the lawn and not being played with.

AIBU?

[PearlyWhites]

I think yabu we have a slide 2 swings a house, a slide and a sand and water put. My dc love them all

[stepawayfromthescreen]

we have the 10ft trampoline and the dc's bloody love it, but I secretly long to get rid of the bloody thing. It's an eye sore and the dc's are incapable of going on it without screaming and squealing loudly. Lost count of the number of times I've been outside to ask them to keep the racket down. Really tempted to dismantle it and drop it off at the skip!(but won't, they'd hate me)

[LoserNoMore]

Money well spent IMO. We have a trampoline, swing, slide, sand pit and playhouse. Mine love playing in the garden and it means if they want to play on a slide/swing I don't need to venture out and I can sit on my arse in the garden . The downside is they attract other people's kids.

[TattyDevine]

They don't "need" it but the more attractive the garden is the more likely they will be drawn out there (obviously!) and trampoline is great exercise even if the neighbours hate them and generally they are a bit of an eyesore.

I haven't done the swings/climbing frame and trampoline thing but we do have a playhouse on stilts that I painted nice pastel and white colours which looks quite quaint and not an eyesore which draws them out there. It has a slide down to the bottom, and their area is sectioned off with railway sleepers and springy bark and at times they've had sandpits in that bit too, and an "outdoor" kitchen, that kind of thing.

So you can compromise.

Do what you want, essentially. I had a conversation with this theme with a friend just yesterday who wanted to do something like this with the garden they have just moved into and her boarding school middle class husband was all weird about it - same idea, but try and overcome it if you feel deep down you should have something for your child, its not forever, 5 or so years and you can probably ditch it!

[McNewPants2013]

www.swingsetprosofsocal.com/products/fullsize/CostcoSet.jpg

My DC have this one, had it 3 years now and it's well worth the money. DC have had endless fun and there is no time limit where I have to drag them from the park to go home.

[Twinklestarstwinklestars]

We filled our garden with a summerhouse but we live next to a park so our kids just go there.

[whiskyplease]

Hurrah for maryz.

[JollyOrangeGiant]

We have a huuuuge sand pit. I can lie flat out in it. DS is 2 and loves it. The idea is that I can just open the back door and let him out. If we didn't have the sandpit he'd be a lot more hassle.

[Tailtwister]

If you have a big enough garden, I think it's nice to have these things. Small urban gardens aren't really big enough though and trampolines can be especially intrusive for neighbours. We don't have any large garden toys, but spend a lot of time out of the house and do things like den building and gardening when we are at home.

If we had a big garden I think we would have them though.

[ThisWayForCrazy]

We have lots of toys in the garden. I have two stalls only 14 months apart. If I take them to the park I need 4 hands and to split myself in half, it gives me the shakes. So we have a park in our garden. We spend a lot of time in our garden and they love it.

[ThisWayForCrazy]

FFS, stalls means smalls...

[PrincePolo]

Am really jealous of everyone who seems to have the space to put loads of stuff in their garden. BTW anything taller than 2.5m needs to be 2m away from the boundary otherwise it needs planning. And technically anything with a 'raised platform' above 30cm needs planning (so any non-sunken trampoline, any slide, etc).

[ThisWayForCrazy]

Planning permission only apples to things that are fixed to the ground.

[PrincePolo]

Yes true, but no doubt many of these pieces of equipment are fixed to the ground, otherwise they would be unsafe.

[Scruffey]

Our park is covered in dog shit so that's why we have stuff in the garden. Yanbu if you have free access to parks not covered in shit!

[ThisWayForCrazy]

I don't think I've even seen any gardens toys fixed to the ground in real life.

[jamdonut]

I have 3 teenagers. Never had a trampoline. It would take up far too much space in our garden, and DH put his foot down,as the garden is his pride and joy.
Next door ,and the 3 doors up all have one as do next door but one the other way.

If you sit in in the garden , the squeak-thump,squeak-thump is torturous to listen to.

[Oldraver]

Everything I have bought has been worth the money ok the trampoline was given to us and I probably wouldn't of bought one. DS has a large sandpit and still loves to play in in, as he has diggers and crane things in there

[BeeMom]

ThisWay - my trampoline is attached to the ground by 4 16" long auger anchors... I'd rather be able to prove to my home insurance company that I had it secured when it gets ripped out of the ground and sent flying into a neighbour's house. We also keep a lock on the kipper of the net enclosure - that way, if any neighbourhood kids go on it when we are away and get hurt... again, they were clearly not authorised to be on it.

Maybe I am overcautious, but the anchors and the lock cost me a tenner... small price, IMO.

[McNewPants2013]

mine isnot anchored to the floor, it is heavy enough not to need it. Unless someone can tell me otherwise

[pictish]

We have a small house but a good sized garden. There is little room for large toys in the house but outside we have a double set of swings, a trampoline (8 ft), a large sandpit, and a see saw.

We are currently restoring a wooden wendy house we got off Gumtree for £30. It will have a play kitchen etc inside.

I don't think it's a must have...but my parents never went in for any of that either, and I remember finding it a bit miserable of them. My kids love the garden, and have their own wee park to play in any time they like. And they DO like.

[ThisWayForCrazy]

Beeway, my comment is relating to planning permission. I was not commenting regarding safety etc. If equipment is fixed to the ground you may require planning permission.

[BeeMom]

I'd be curious to know if that includes the anchors to prevent it from blowing away/tipping over, or just those things that are "permanently" secured (like posts for fences, garden sheds or elevated tree houses).

Anyone have any idea?

[Linnet]

Our garden is shared with the flat upstairs and it's not big enough for two whirly gigs and a slide/trampoline etc. Which is a shame as my kids always wanted a swing/slide then a trampoline when they became popular, they just had to make do with the local park instead.