'Who approved this?' Parents shocked over 'dangerous' playground equipment

“The way I remember the council taking away the monkey bars and the flying fox because they were too dangerous and now kids have this…”

Taking your kids to the playground is always a win.

Letting them be rowdy outside instead of inside the house? Yes please!

But, there comes a point when fun, age-appropriate equipment becomes too dangerous, and parents think one Brisbane playground potentially crosses the line.

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Image: TikTok / @laurenkurup.

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“Who approved this [death] trap?”

Brisbane mum Lauren Kurup has taken to TikTok this week, sharing a video of herself and her family attempting to use a piece of playground equipment at Ipswich’s Outlook Park.

“I’m sorry but who approved this [death] trap,” she wrote in the video.

“Honestly, who’s designing these parks! It was so high up too!”

The piece of equipment requires users to step off a still platform and onto a moving one, which forms the shape of an arc before dropping the user on the other side.

Lauren confirmed in the comments that there was also a larger version, and that while she thought the safety aspect was questionable, they did have a good time using it.

“Not gonna lie tho, we had SO much fun,” she said in the caption.

“Sorry, is this the park or Survivor?”

The majority of commenters on the post were just as shocked about the equipment, calling it a ‘free trip to the hospital’.

“Sorry, is this the park or Survivor?” one person said.

“Okay so parks are designed to challenge kids' thinking and safety so they can learn and develop but that’s just too much hahahahaha,” another said.

“The way I remember the council taking away the monkey bars and the flying fox because they were too dangerous and now kids have this…” said a third.

“There’s one of these at the park near me, I’m a 30 year old woman and it frightens me. Ain’t no way my 3 year old is going up there,” another agreed.

“Looks like it worked perfectly!”

However, others thought the poster was being dramatic, instead commending the ‘dangerous’ piece of equipment for encouraging supervised play.

“But look at you all challenging yourself safely on it! AND it got parents playing with kids. Looks like it worked perfectly,” said one commenter.

“Teaching kids risk management. You have to apply yourself from beginning to end,” another agreed.

“This looks great. Teaches age appropriate kids about risk assessment, momentum, balance,” another suggested.

“Supervised play is incredibly important so things like this at parks are downright good for kids,” said a fourth.

"Ipswich City Council takes seriously its commitment to providing safe play environments for children"

In a statement to Kidspot, a spokesperson from Ipswich City Council said they would continue to assess the safety of the playground, encouraging members of the local community to come forward with any specific concerns.

"Ipswich City Council takes seriously its commitment to providing safe play environments for children at the more than 550 parks and reserves across the city," a spokesperson told Kidspot.

"Playground equipment at Montview Stage 3 Park in White Rock was subject to rigorous safety assessments. It has been deemed compliant with all relevant Australian safety standards. This includes an assessment of the swinging platform by a certified independent playground safety inspector prior to the park being opened to the public.

"Council conducts regular safety checks of park and playground equipment and will do so at Montview Stage 3 Park in White Rock. Council will consider any feedback from the community regarding the safety of playground equipment and encourages community members to contact council if they have concerns."

Originally published as 'Who approved this?' Parents shocked over 'dangerous' playground equipment