Kinsella Reserve Playground

Kinsella Reserve is a quiet, tree-lined lawn in Aidanfield, on Christchurch's south-west edge, and its playground sits right in the middle of it on a wide bark-chip pad, well back from the street. The one to head for is the overhead glide track, where kids hang from a handle and ride along a rail.¹

Equipment

There are two timber-post play structures. The bigger one is a climbing circuit for school-age kids: a chain ladder, a rope net, a swing bridge, a rock-style climbing wall, blue web monkey bars, parallel bars and the glide track.¹ The smaller one, under a yellow roof, has a plastic climbing wall, a fireman's pole, two steering wheels, a bead counting frame, a tunnel and a short green slide, which suits confident preschoolers. One parent rates the multi-play especially good for two to four year olds.

A separate frame holds three swings, one of them a baby seat, and the council dates it to 2003.² Its 2008 survey photos show both structures already in place, so this is an established playground rather than a new build.³

Practical Info

The play area is unfenced, but there is a good stretch of grass between it and Kinsella Crescent on every side, with paths in from the street. Shade comes only from the trees at the edges of the pad, so pack hats in summer. There is no toilet block on the reserve, and parking is on the street. One reviewer has asked the council to sort out flooded patches, so expect soggy ground after heavy rain. For more variety close by, Cobra Reserve Playground is about half a kilometre away and Bronco Playground about 600 m.