Play areas, nurseries and sports pitches
Artificial Grass for Schools Reading
Clean, safe, low-maintenance artificial grass for school play areas, nurseries and sports pitches across Reading, with shock-absorbing padding where children climb and play.
Artificial Grass for Playing Areas
For larger organisations such as schools, nurseries, universities and sports facilities, there is a strong case for having some areas, especially a sports pitch or part of a playground, fitted with artificial grass.
For sports pitches we provide some of the best 4G astroturf in Reading, so if you are looking to convert part of your grounds for all-year-round sport, please get in touch. Our infill-free 4G artificial grass is one of the best playing surfaces available, with minimal ongoing maintenance.
It is particularly suited to schools and nurseries, as you don't have to arrange for anyone to schedule infill top-ups. You will also notice that, compared with 3G, your changing room floors won't be covered in sand or rubber crumb after a session, which saves on cleaning time and costs.
Artificial Grass for Play Areas Reading
Artificial grass for play areas in Reading is becoming increasingly popular in schools and especially nurseries. There are other options, such as chip bark or rubber mulch, but both bring some degree of mess and hassle. Sand, crumb and rubber mulch often come loose and find their way from people to places. Whilst this is fairly minimal with rubber mulch, with the cheaper alternative of wood chippings it is quite excessive. Not only can small bits of wood be brought into your building, but in high winds the chips can be blown out of their area and become a maintenance headache. After a year or so the wood starts to degrade and smell, which generally means a full replacement.
Unless your play area is set up like Fort Knox, it is also likely that animals such as foxes or cats will use it as a toilet. As well as the unwelcome mess, this can bring health risks for younger children. An artificial grass play area gives animal fouling nowhere to hide, which makes it a safer and more hygienic solution too.
Artificial Grass for Nurseries Reading
When installing artificial grass for nurseries in Reading, we lay it over an appropriate foam or rubber underlay to provide protective cushioning from falls. The synthetic grass gives a very neat, clean and vibrant play area with little to no maintenance. We are finding more areas that were previously part grass and part concrete being replaced by one continuous layer of artificial grass. In a nursery or junior school it is ideal as a play area and under climbing frames and slides, giving children a safe, clean surface when fitted with additional shock padding.
For secondary schools, colleges and universities in Reading, an artificial grass playing surface for a variety of sports means you will have an area that can be used almost all year round to keep students healthy and active. As the installation includes a fully draining sub-base, many schools have been able to use their artificial grass areas to host other outdoor events that might otherwise have been cancelled due to bad weather. Others have been able to hire out their facility to bring in additional revenue.
There really has been no better time to enhance your play areas with the best artificial grass available.
Planning a play area or pitch?
Send us the area's measurements and how it will be used, and we'll arrange a survey. Send your enquiry any time; we reply Monday to Saturday, 9am to 5pm.
Artificial Grass for Sports Pitches Reading
We have an experienced team of artificial turf fitters who have installed and converted many grass and shale pitches into new synthetic ones, so if you are looking for artificial grass for sports pitches in Reading, we hope to be on your list of suppliers and installers. We can install both 3G and 4G astroturf pitches, but the vast majority now choose 4G, especially when replacing an older 2G or 3G pitch, as you will already be familiar with the maintenance those earlier pitches need. Say goodbye to infilling and the hassle, cost and negative feedback from players just after you've topped up.
If you have carried out several patch repairs and it is starting to become a regular exercise, why not use our lease plan to explore the feasibility of a full replacement? Over the long term it will be the more cost-effective option, and one your users will appreciate.
Safety Surfacing Under Play Equipment
Wherever children climb, slide or swing, the surface underneath has to absorb a fall. Playground surfacing is tested to BS EN 1177, which gives each surface a critical fall height: the height from which a fall onto it is unlikely to cause a serious head injury. With artificial grass it's the shock pad underneath that does this work, and a thicker pad gives a higher critical fall height.
- Tell us the free-fall height of each piece of equipment, and we'll match the shock pad to it
- Grass and pad run as one level surface, with no loose material and no edges to trip on
- The same build-up suits nursery gardens, early years outdoor areas and primary playgrounds
- It drains, so the play area is usable soon after rain
Multi-Use Games Areas
A multi-use games area, or MUGA, is one space marked out for several sports. A 4G surface suits it well: it plays well for football, hockey and tennis, needs no infill top-ups and can be used in all weathers. For primary schools, a shorter, denser grass gives a MUGA that works for PE lessons and playtimes alike.
Tell us which sports the area needs to host and how many hours a week it will be used, and we'll recommend a surface to match.
Colleges, Academies and Secondary Schools
On larger sites the priority is hours of use. A pitch that's playable in January as well as June gets far more out of the timetable, and some schools hire their artificial pitches out to local clubs in the evenings and at weekends to bring in extra revenue.
State schools, nurseries and other public sector organisations can use our finance and lease arrangement, approved by the Education Authority, to spread the cost rather than paying the whole amount up front.
Choosing a Surface for School Grounds
There's no single best surface for every part of a school's grounds. Here's how the usual options compare:
- Natural grass: cheapest to lay, but it wears bare and is out of use after rain for much of the year
- Bark and wood chip: low cost, but it blows about, gets carried indoors and breaks down over time
- Rubber mulch: cushions falls well, but loose pieces still find their way inside
- Wetpour rubber: seamless and hard-wearing, with a flat, hard-looking finish rather than a green one
- Artificial grass with a shock pad: green all year, cushioned, free-draining and very low maintenance
For playing fields and pitches that need to be used all year, a 4G surface is usually the answer. For play areas, it's artificial grass over the right shock pad.
Prices for Schools and Play Areas
Garden lawns from £75 per m²
Play areas and pitches depend on the grass, the shock padding and the groundworks needed, so we quote each project after a survey. For schools and leisure businesses, our lease plan can spread the cost of a 4G pitch. Read more about artificial grass costs.
Schools and Play Areas FAQs
Do you supply as well as fit artificial grass for schools?
Our expertise is supply and fit. We pride ourselves on the quality of our artificial grass installations, and when issuing guarantees most artificial grass fitters will only guarantee materials they are familiar with and have sourced themselves.
If you are trying to get artificial grass on a budget, beware, as this may be a false economy. Regular artificial grass installers have good trade rates with their synthetic grass suppliers, so should be able to get the materials at a better price than you can yourself. Whilst there are several online companies offering budget grasses, a good or bad installation will make the biggest difference to how much you enjoy your artificial grass.
Which is the best artificial grass for play areas?
There isn't one single artificial grass that will be best for every location, circumstance, budget and purpose. A play area could also be for young children or for playing sport, which is why we and other artificial grass and astro turf providers offer a range. If you are looking at a 4G football pitch, which can also be used for sports such as hockey or tennis, it will have very different attributes to a luxury artificial lawn. Hockey or tennis players would hate trying to play on a 45mm high, thick, lush luxury artificial grass; it would be a nightmare for them.
Similarly, if your play area is for children and you are planning raised apparatus such as climbing frames over the artificial grass, more important than the grass will be additional shock pads installed under it. Talk to the experts at Artificial Grass Reading and, once we know how you intend to use your fake grass, we can help you decide on the best artificial grass for you.
How much is artificial grass installation for a school in Reading?
This will depend on the specification of grass you choose, how large the area is, its shape and the surface it is replacing.
Generally, the larger the area, the slightly cheaper the total cost per square metre, but there are caveats. If the area is an unusual shape or width, you may end up with a large amount of artificial grass wastage. Artificial grass comes in rolls, and the roll width will influence how much wastage you have and whether two widths need joining.
For gardens, full supply and fit with our most popular grass starts from £75 per m². Play areas and pitches with shock padding are quoted after a survey.
Does your artificial grass fade over time if played on frequently?
No. All our grasses include a UV protective coating which prevents fading, and they should continue to look great well past our standard 10-year guarantee period, however often they are played on.
What do you recommend as edging for artificial grass in a play area?
This will depend on your specific fitting and location. Whereas wooden sleepers are very popular as an edge for gardens, a step may not be the best option for a play area. Sometimes it is, but if an existing wall or fence encloses the play area, we fit a frame around the area at ground level and fix the edges of the grass to it. This lets the grass go right up to the existing edging, wall or fence.
The finish is a very personal choice, so we tend to let you tell us what you would like, and if it is practical to do, we will happily provide your choice of edge finish.
What is critical fall height?
It's the height from which a fall onto a surface is unlikely to cause a serious head injury, measured under BS EN 1177. Under artificial grass the shock pad sets it, so we match the pad thickness to the free-fall height of your play equipment.
Can artificial grass be used for a multi-use games area?
Yes. A 4G surface can be marked for several sports, including football, hockey and tennis, and it can be used all year round with very little maintenance.
Schools and Nurseries We Cover
We install artificial grass for schools, nurseries and sports clubs across Reading, including Tilehurst, Caversham, Theale, Woodley, Shinfield, Twyford, Earley, Sonning, Pangbourne, Calcot, Charvil, Wokingham, Henley-on-Thames and Wallingford.