Urban Planning, Ecological Transition, Urban Services and Housing

Work is now under way on the first of nine large play areas planned in different districts of Barcelona. The new playable space will be in C/ Alfons el Magnànim, between the streets of Cristóbal de Moura and Mogent, in the neighbourhood of El Besòs i el Maresme. The area will feature a large structure, with two towers of 5 and 6 metres and slides in a spiral shape.

The new play area in the district of Sant Martí has been designed with accessibility criteria and will have transfer platforms and stairs with supports, ensuring access for as many children as possible.

Besides the slides and the towers, the area will have some unusual play elements such as a collaborative rope swing, a ground-level roundabout and a trampoline. There will also be swings, balancing strips and a sandpit, along with green zones and rest areas.

The work should be completed in June.

Playable and inclusive city

Barcelona currently has over 900 play areas, more than a hundred of which have been renovated or are brand new. Super play areas come as part of the Play Plan for Public Space, to guarantee children’s right to play in public space.

Other projects corresponding to the plan include the process to green up school playgrounds and make them co-educational and community spaces where children can play and learn outside; the programme “Protegim les escoles”, which has also improved the conditions of public spaces used by children and families, and “Juguem a les places”, with play options in thirty city squares, and more.

Notable benefits from a playable city include the physical, social, mental and affectionate welfare of children, thanks to contact with nature and being able to enjoy free time and interaction with other people.