We Test Out Strathfield Park - Home To The Biggest Slides In The Inner West

By: Kylie Purtell, ellaslist explorer

This playground really does have it all! It’s a really beautiful playground, with a lot of it incorporating natural colours and textures. They’ve really catered for kids of every age and ability, as well as creating comfortable, covered seating areas to cater for parents and carers as well.

For adults there are plenty of places to sit, either in the covered picnic areas or in well-shaded spots around the different areas of the playground. There are plenty of bins around the place as well as two BBQs, perfect for cooking lunch or dinner.

 

 

The playgrounds span the Homebush Road side of the park and are split in to a few distinct areas… the high climbing towers with FOUR slides from big & windy to small and straight, tailored for kids who love to get high off the ground. There is an excellent ropes course and rope climbing frame located near the climbing towers and slides. There is also a really fast flying-fox, featuring 3 cables, meaning there is less of a wait as 3 kids can zip-down at the same time.

 

 

The next section is great for kids who love to climb and balance, but are perhaps not as keen or as confident with heights. This section of the playground features a ropes climbing course to a small tower, with a small metal slide to exit down, as well as a “rock” climbing wall, balance beams, a huge see-saw and some music making instruments (a large xylophone and drum).

 

 

The final section is spread across a large area and incorporates equipment to cater for the youngest explorers and climbers, an easy to walk up ramp to access a small slide, mini rope-climbing tunnel, swings (including a large rope hammock, nest swing, baby swings and swing to cater for kids with disabilities), large and small roundabouts and a maze with funhouse mirrors and puzzles. There is also a giant nest swing for bigger kids at the inner edge of the playground, next to the rotunda and open grassy areas.

 

 

The rest of Strathfield park is dedicated to sports playing fields (basketball, soccer, cricket, netball & volleyball) and a great bike track with smooth paths circles around and crosses through the park.

 

In A Nutshell

Cafe/toilets/parking nearby? There are very well-kept toilets located within the park and street parking the whole way around, with some dedicated parking spots on the Chalmers Road side (which is on the other side to the playground). There are no cafes nearby as this is mostly a residential area, however there are shops and cafes a short drive away where you could pop in for a takeaway coffee before you get to the park.

What did the kids think? The kids absolutely loved it. Of all the parks we’ve visited recently, they declared this one the best, purely because of the large range of different equipment on offer. You could really spend a whole day there, especially if you pack a picnic lunch, and the kids would still feel like they didn’t have enough time to spend on everything.

Best Moments? For the big girl (6 years old) the giant slides and flying fox were her favourite. This flying-fox was a big hit because it’s a fast one with a big swing at the end of it when it hits the stopper. The youngest (4 years old) loved the wide variety of climbing equipment, a lot of which was either totally enclosed (meaning she could climb up really high without both her or my fear of her falling) or had the ropes close together to provide better footing, and the rope was really tough, meaning it didn’t wobble as much as some of the rope climbing equipment we’ve encountered. She also really liked the baby roundabout as it didn’t go as fast so she felt safer on it.

Top tips: It’s a really great park, definitely one to visit when you have some time to be able to spend a half or full-day playing & exploring. I was impressed with how much shade there was, from fully established trees to the numerous shade sails and covered picnic shelters. The only thing to be careful of is the fact the park isn’t enclosed, so you’ll want to keep a close eye on really small children and runners as the playground is situated beside a very busy road.

 

 

The Details

• Address: Homebush Rd and Chalmers Rd, Strathfield, NSW
• For more details about the park upgrades, visit the website.