Children Come First

Speciality Castles™ is the largest supplier of licensed inflatable games and jumping castles in Australia and New Zealand and conduct over 10,000 hires each and every year. Our operating procedures for our franchisees and staff have been formulated with your children and our patrons safety first and foremost so that at each one of these events our customers receive the best quality and service available.

Speciality Castles prides itself on its safety record and continually revises its designs, searches for improvements and has independent audits conducted by industry professionals to ensure these high levels are maintained both in our products and operating systems.

Netted Walled Castles

Jumping Castles, Bouncy Castles, Inflatable Games or jumpers come in many different designs, shapes and Sizes. Speciality Castles™, uses a combination of inflated walls, netting and digital printing in its manufacturing process, which has been adopted from the worlds largest market, the USA, where these products are widely used. The netted walls, which are used on the side of the castle and front are used to perform a number of key functions:

• Contain Patrons within the Game
• Increased supervision and viewing
• Provide air flow through the castle to keep fresh cool air in the playing area
• Reduce the amount of solid surfaces on the unit to assist with anchorage safety and wind resistance.

Some jumping castles that have bumper or small walls at the front of the castles do not provide adequate protection for children who can topple over the top falling on hard ground causing injury. The netted walls at the front of our castles, prevent children or riders from falling out of the front of the castle. The netting at the front combined with the netting on the side walls allows parents and supervisors to see their children from the front and side of the jumping castle and also allows fresh air to circulate through the castle, which is important on warm to hot days.

Should my children jump against the wall of a jumping castle ?

Jumping and bouncy castles are fun and should be supervised at all time and our supervisors request riders to jump on the surface of the jumping castle, rather than "Crashing" into the walls of the castle. Children or patrons who jump into the walls are at risk of rebounding into other children or rider’s causing injury. Although it may be fun at the time, operators who encourage your children to jump and bounce off walls may be putting your children at unnecessary risk. Netted walls of our Jumping Castles, absorb the riders body weight lowering them gently to the surface and returns its shape once the riders move back into the jumping area.

Can my children’s fingers get caught in the netting ?

Since December 2005, all licensed products manufactured by Speciality Castles™ have been manufactured with 8mm netting, which are tested in accordance with the Australian Standard. This ensures that even the smallest fingers cannot get trapped or caught in the netting. This also means children cannot climb the netting or bite the netting with their teeth. Operators who allow any child to be photographed while on top of a jumping castle or attempting to climb or deflate a jumping castle are irresponsible and are not competent to be installing castles at your event.

Blower Covers

Exclusive to Speciality Castles™ is the unique blower cover that covers the electrical fan that supplies air to the jumping castles. The blower cover is another added safety feature of our jumping castles and provides three main functions. In addition the blower is made from moulded hardened plastic with round edges for even further benefit.

• The blower cover stops rain or water falling directly onto the blower and electrical supply
• Side netting of the blower cover stops papers and other matter from being sucked into the fan and obstructing air flow meaning your jumping castle will receive an uninterrupted air supply all day long.
• Having a blower cover, gives parents peace of mind. Curious children and wandering hands are deterred from interfering with the blower and electrical supply.

Safety Mats

Every Jumping Castle or Bouncy Castle supplied by Speciality Castles™ is installed with a soft crash mat at the front entrance of every castle, just to make sure any accidental falls or spills getting in or out of the jumping castle are met with a softer landing. Safety mats are law and you should make sure that your supplier complies by suppling you with a safety mat with your hire.

Electrical Safety Switches

Because accidents, blackouts, storms and power surges do happen, all of Speciality Castles™ Jumping Castles come with an Electrical Safety cut out switch in case of such an incident and all blowers and leads are tagged and tested every three months in accordance with the amusement hire industry standards. Don’t risk your children and ensure your supplier has the right electrical equipment in use which is tagged and tested within 3 months of your hire.

Pegs

Pegs used to hold down jumping castles should be no less than 300mm in length and a minimum thickness of 16mm and our company uses pegs of at least this standard. The pegs used with our castles are rounded on top and finish flush with the ground, which reduces the risk of trip hazards and injury.

No Jump Nets

A Unique feature of Speciality Castles™ and our slides is the no Jump Net. This is a safety net placed over the platform of the slide to encourage children and riders to sit down before entering the slide. This innovation by Speciality Castles ™has seen leading manufacturers around the world adopt this manufacturing technique and is now seen on all Freestyle Slides products, the manufacturer of the world’s largest inflatable slides. To further eliminate the chance of injury, Speciality Castles ™ has introduced a policy of only one rider per time on the slide to reduce collision with other riders.

Insurance

Speciality Castles™ holds a certificate of currency for $20,000,000 and is underwritten by an Australian APRA approved Insurer. A copy of our certificate of currency is available to all customers when their booking has been paid in full.

When asking any jumping castle operator for proof of insurance ensure that the underwriter is APRA approved, which is a requirement of many local councils and organisations.

Operating in Wet Weather

Speciality Castles™ provide shade and shower covers with all products however issue a caution to customers about wet weather. Jumping Castle companies who provide "Full Rain Covers" and operate in wet conditions may still place the safety of children at risk. There are other factors to consider during wet weather, however two of the most important are the placement of the electrical cord and electric blower, which during rain may become submersed dangerously in pools of water caused by excess runoff from the rain cover of your jumping castle.

During wet weather, a rain cover will cause the rain water to run off around the sides of the jumping castle and although the rain cover may stop rain and water from falling directly into the castle, the lying bodies of water can also create slip and fall hazards around the castle. Bodies of water outside the castle can be transferred inside the castle with wet feet, causing the jumping castle surface to become slippery and dangerous.

Speciality Castles™ does not install jumping castles during rain. If it is raining on the morning of your party or event our franchisee or installer will contact you firstly to see if your party is still proceeding and if it is raining at your location. If it is not raining Speciality Castles ™ will install your castle as normal. Once the castle is installed and the hire agreement is entered into, the castle hire is payable in full.

Should it rain during the hire, we advise all customers during training before the hire to stop use of the jumping castle during rain and only proceed to use the Jumping Castles again after rain has ceased and the jumping castle is dry. This reduces the risk of any slip and fall incident.

If you cancel your booking because the weather has turned sour, you can notify your installer or franchisee prior to the booking and you will not be charged a cancellation fee. Your booking deposit is non refundable however this can be transferred and used at any time for your next booking within 12 months of the cancellation.

Supervision

Supervision is the key to any event or function, where amusement and equipment and children are present. Prior to each event the adult (18 years and over) entering into the hire agreement will be trained by the installer on how to supervise the jumping castle during the event and the safe operations of the jumping Castle. A supervisor is required at all times to be in attendance supervising the operation of the jumping castle.

For functions that are held in public places and are open to any member of the public (fetes, carnivals etc) Speciality Castles ™ will be required to provide a fully trained supervisor for the event. For private functions (such as birthday parties) held in public parks etc please contact our call centre on 1300 88 28 71 to find out about supervising your own party.

Government and Design Registration

All jumping castles and inflatables are required by law to be design registered in Australia and in some states each individual jumping castle units are required to be registered each and every year. Speciality Castles™ has conducted independent testing and had all inflatable designs are tested by a qualified engineer to obtain design Registration with the various government departments.

Customers who reside in Western Australia, South Australia and Queensland should request any supplier to provide a copy of the design registration certificate and insurance prior to any booking.

Quality Assurance and Inspection

Prior to each set up our franchisees, conduct a Pre Operational Safety Check, ensuring the jumping castle is in good condition prior to use and that the site is suitable for set up. Each year, Speciality Castles™ conducts annual inspections through a qualified, experienced and competent persons and or a qualified engineer to further enhance product quality control.

Industry Membership

Speciality Castles™ and its franchisees are members of the Australian Amusement Association, AALARA and the international amusement industry body IAAPA. Members of associations like the AAA are regulated for members to adhere to the code of conduct of each relevant body.

Speciality Castles™ strongly recommends that any customers seek to have their supplier provide evidence of membership to one of these organisations to demonstrate its compliance to the rules and regulations of the amusement industry.

Franchisee & Employee Safety Checks

Like Child Care Centres, schools and other people who are in a position of authority, we take the care of children seriously. That is why every employee and franchisee of Speciality Castles and Auset Pty Ltd goes through a thorough back ground and history check to make sure that all of our people are the right people to be supervising and servicing our children.

Don't take a risk with your children's safety, ensure that any company who delivers any jumping castles or provides supervision to your party or event has been checked, it's the law.