Play Equipment rip-off prices!

[yogabird]

Our PTA has worked so hard to raise funds for somewhere for the 7-11 year olds to climb and enjoy the outside and I can't find anywhere that will supply equipment at anything close to affordable. We only have a smallish space and the 'recommended' safe flooring costs a fortune and that's before you actually buy the apparatus. Does anyone know of where I can get a good deal?

how about just using the money to buy lots of equipment for them to take out and play with, rather than a built structure? things like ropes and sticks to build dens, and tarpaulins for roofs, also dressing up stuff and large 'outside' board games etc

the problem is germyrabbit that those things are great, and really useful for the kids to play with, but they don't have anywhere near the same long term value that outdoor play equipment does. It also doesn't encourage the same amount of physical play in the same way that outdoor play equipment does. We helped fund one for our school, and thankfully we only needed to raise a third of the total as those things are expensive.

There are a couple of areas that you could look at for extra fundraising. Do any of your parents work for large corporates that might do match funding of some kind? They can look under their HR, CSR, or Corporate Social Responsibility policies. Additionally, companies like Sainsbury's have funds for local charities and schools too. They won't give you the whole amount but would possibly donate something.

Have you got parents in the PTA who do marketing/PR jobs? If so get them to write a fairly glossy style letter outlining what you're raising money for, what you've raised so far, and how much extra you need for your target. Say you're asking all local charities if they could donate X amount (this works if your PTA is a registered charity).

You may have already done this but have you checked out the PTA magazines and websites? They list suppliers of these things and they also often have special deals running with them.

All really helpful stuff, thanks. have contacted a couple more companies. Does anyone know the rules on safety surfacing? This is soooooo expensive and the area has grass underneath - is that not good enough if we don't go too high, cos then I can spend the money on something the kids want and can use and not on flooring! Not much of a wow factor when three quarters of the cash has gone on the floor :-(

We have a 'trim trail' installed onto grass. I have linked to a similar one that shows grass installation in their costs if you look at the individual trails, as I don't know what company we used...
www.sovereignplayequipment.co.uk/physical-development/