Introduction

Trampoline parks offer a wide range of social, recreational and sport-based activities and can be aimed towards people of varying ages and skill levels. Risk-taking is a feature of trampoline parks. Trampoline parks aim to offer users the chance to encounter acceptable risks as part of a stimulating, challenging and controlled environment. As such they have the responsibility to balance the need to offer risk and the need to keep users safe from serious harm.

The existence of and adherence to this document will not prevent all injuries. Trampoline use has an inherent risk of injury, particularly if the equipment is used or supervised improperly. A high percentage of trampoline park users are children. Children benefit from, and develop knowledge and skill by, experimenting on equipment.

This document aims to define requirements that minimize the likelihood of serious and fatal accidents while allowing users, especially children, to expand their level of competence, socialize and enjoy themselves.

The most serious risks involved in any trampolining activity are spinal and neck injuries that can arise from incorrectly performed actions and failed landings. Experience has shown that adolescents and adults are more likely to perform high-risk actions. In trampoline parks the most frequent injury mechanisms are uncontrolled landings and misjudgement of one‘s own capabilities, resulting in both minor and more severe injuries.

For trampoline parks, potential risks can be reduced through construction (design, manufacture and installation) and operation (supervision, staff training, maintenance, instructions and continuous risk management etc.). Ongoing work to identify possible risks and injury scenarios is essential to ensure that all critical risks are mitigated and that all reasonable safety measures are established in the form of safety policies, safety procedures, safety information to users, staff education, etc.

This document aims to:

— reflect the range of trampoline park concepts found on the market, from parks for children to areas aimed at target groups with high gymnastic demands and prior knowledge;
— set a general framework for design and operating conditions;
— prevent accidents with a disabling or fatal consequence;
— not restrict the manufacturer’s construction freedom;
— not to restrict the operator’s operational freedom;
— allow and encourage innovation;
— provide a direction for future developments for existing and new trampoline parks.

The committee recognized that they had a duty of care to protect trampoline park users from hazards that may not be obvious to the user. With these factors in mind, the Committee agreed that the document should aim to provide requirements to minimize the hazards known to cause injury.

This document is the result of an extensive process with a large group of experts from 3 continents that was finalized under COVID-19 conditions. It has proven challenging to come to a document that allows for all cultural and legal differences, since around the world similar installations are operated differently. This document is hesitant to set requirements that limit or block nonconventional-but-safe methods of operation. In applying this document, the legal and social conventions of the country in which the trampoline park is operated should be followed.

BS EN ISO 23659:2022

Sports and recreational facilities. Trampoline parks. Safety requirements

Current

Published:

31 Dec 2022