Slide etiquette

[pipnchops]

I have a 2yo and 4yo and this still puzzles me... Is it OK to let your children climb up the slide at the park? Obviously not at soft play or places where there are signs saying not to. My rule of thumb is its OK as long as there's nobody coming down the slide or playing near the side and likely to want to come down, and my children don't have muddy feet, then i say its OK. What's the general consensus?

I always tell mine not to, just so that I am consistent if they are muddy or we are at soft play.

I find it easier to have a consistent rule that they can't do it. My 2yo DD would get confused if one day she could and the next she couldn't because of some external factor she probably isn't really aware of, like muddy shoes.

I am "no climbing up the slide". It is easier just to have one rule than expect them to remember the conditions when climbing up the slide could be acceptable. Glowering at other children climbing up the slide while their parents were distracted with other things was one of my favorite playpark activities.

Not ok. It makes it less slippery so less fun for everyone else.

I'm on the fence! On the one hand I have an image of their feet slipping from under them, them falling, unable to stop themselves with their hands and doing damage to their face or mouth, on the other you can't not let children take risks.

I wouldn't stress about the slide getting muddy because you can't expect playgrounds to be sparkling clean, other kids playing there should be dressed in waterproofs or old, un-precious clothes anyway.

I HATE when children climb up and slide down repeatedly when there are other children waiting their turn to come down. That's just not on.

I think it's important for imaginative play that there isn't one set way of using playground equipment.

So, to sum up, I reckon it's ok as long as no one else is waiting. Most children of an age where they can climb up should be able to grasp that rule, so I don't think it's too inconsistent and confusing.

I'm in the no camp, just because you feel kids should be in old clothes doesn't mean it is always the case, why should other children's clothes get caked in mud amongst possible other things on a child's shoes?
Having different rules at different times is confusing for younger children, not so much as they get older.
If they fall and slip the damage can be pretty bad cut lips etc.. usually where there is a slide there will be some form of climbing equipment if the need to climb.
Slides are for sliding down not walking up, why do you feel so entitled to add potential damage to something that doesn't belong to you?

It makes the slide less slippery.

Much easier to have a clear no climbing rule for slides

Thanks for your replies, it explains why I definitely felt a bit judged by a grandma at the park today who, when her granddaughter wanted to climb up the slide after she had seen mine doing it, made a point of saying very loudly "no we don't climb up the slide"! Ooops. I felt like a very bad parent. I don't have a problem with telling my girls not to do something and explaining why not, even if they've done it before they seem fine with it. But maybe I'm setting a bad example so maybe a new rule of mine will be only do it when we're alone in the park!

I'm going to go again at the grain and say that we were fine with our children climbing up the slide, assuming no queue.

And indirect tellings off are rude.

I have seen these threads get properly nasty, MNstyle, mind you.

I'm not sure about it making the slide less slippery, doesn't seem the case with this particular slide which is right outside the school and at school kicking out time all the big kids make a beeline for it and run up and down it 😨 parents are too busy chatting to each other to care 🤔

If there's no one waiting, then I always let mine. Why not? This has never lead to the slide being 'caked in mud' (people are so dramatic ) or any damage.

Where do people get these 'rules' from?

I can't see why not tbh, lots of things will make the slide dirty and less slippy Eg putting feet down whilst sliding down or wearing muddy clothes on the slide. I'm with you op, as long as nobody else was inconvenienced by it and the child was safe.

There was a bonkers thread a while ago where a mum had a small toddler (about 18 months) who wanted to climb up the slide. She made the toddler wait in the queue until it was his turn but then proceeded to hold the rest of the queue back whilst her toddler climbed up the slide.
a lot of people piled on her to tell her she was wrong, she didn't agree though

It's obviously a grey area but I personally feel like a bit of a kill joy following my children around the park telling them what they can or cannot do. As long as they're not doing something dangerous or irritating to others of course!

We have an autistic son who thinks it is far more fun to climb up a slide than it is to slide down. If there's nobody else around, I let him (his shoes are rarely muddy, he doesn't have that much freedom!)

Totally fine unless there are other kids trying to come down, and that seems to be the general consensus at all our local parks. MIL still hasn’t recovered from the horror of seeing all those naughty children...

I say fine unless someone waiting

Problem is it is dangerous because the one time another child runs up and slides down before anyone has noticed the child climbing up could end up with a nasty injury.

I personally hate it when my DS1 who is 2 is trying to go down the slide and can't because other kids are running up it. So I always try to tell him 'we don't go up the slide we go up the stairs' maybe when he's a bit older he can do it if that's what all the other kids are doing at the time or like other PP's say, the slide is empty/nobody waiting. Think he's still too little to understand that just now considering how hard it is to stop him shoving all the other kids out the way to get down even when he does use the stairs

I let mine do it as long as nobody is waiting to come down. Obviously if their shoes were caked in mud or they'd trodden in shit then It would be different.

I let mine do it if no-one is coming down (and even if they are half way through climbing, they still have to back off for someone coming down).

The UK has so many playground rules!!

I used to have to polish our village slide every time children climbed up in wellies or trainers because it stopped it being slidey. It isn’t the mud it’s something about the texture of rubbery soles that’s the problem. I used to like applying car wax and watching them shoot down if I’d asked politely for them to stop on a previous occasion. Only older children, obviously. And our safety surfaces were good.

Non-slidey slides are boring.