Section 3 Assess

Needs Assessment

A systematic process for determining and addressing needs, or gaps between current conditions (where we are now) and desired conditions or ‘wants’ (where we want to be).

A needs assessmentNeeds Assessment A systematic process for determining and addressing needs, or gaps between current conditions (where we are now) and desired conditions or ‘wants’ (where we want to be).close is a starting point for generating new ideas. It is best to do a needs assessment at the start of a project.

A playground needs assessment will give you insight into what your playground offers at the moment, the views of the children that use the playground, and the views of other community members with experience of children and play.

There are many reasons for doing a needs assessment. A few of them are:

• to collect information about the need (playground)
• to ensure we do not build a playground or parts of a playground that is not needed or wanted by the community
• to help you focus on the needs of the children and not on what we, the adults, want to do
• to uncover things that you might have missed
• to test assumptions and reduce the risk of doing more harm than good.

The questions to ask when doing a needs assessment

Figure 15 The questions to ask when doing a needs assessment

The playground needs assessment tool is the perfect starting point to get community members involved. If people are consulted about the problem, they are more likely to contribute to and participate in the solutions.

Natural Playground

An area where kids can play with natural elements such as sand, water, wood, and living plants.

To solve a problem, we first need to understand what the solution is. A playground needs assessmentNeeds Assessment A systematic process for determining and addressing needs, or gaps between current conditions (where we are now) and desired conditions or ‘wants’ (where we want to be).close gathers information about the ‘road’ we need to take to create the natural playgroundNatural Playground An area where kids can play with natural elements such as sand, water, wood, and living plants.close we want for our children.

In short, it is finding out what needs to be done in order to move from where we are to where we want to be. Watch the video to find out how to conduct a needs assessment for your natural playground.

Video: How to do a needs assessment

You can use Tool 2, Tool 3, Tool 4, Tool 5, and Tool 7 to help you conduct a needs assessment for your playground.