Slip testing for sports facilities — our specialism.

Why sports facilities need slip testing

Sports facilities concentrate every factor that elevates slip risk: water (poolside, changing rooms, washing down), high-traffic floors, vulnerable users (children, elderly, injured returning to play), and physical activity that turns a slip into a more serious fall. Slip resistance testing to BS 7976-2 and BS EN 16165 is a core part of the operational duty of care for any UK sports facility.

Areas we routinely test

• Swimming pool surrounds and wet changing areas — barefoot environments tested with the Slider 55 (TRL) rubber
• Sports hall and indoor court surfaces — particularly where multi-use leads to surface contamination
• Synthetic turf perimeters and access points — where transition between surfaces creates slip risk
• Gym and fitness suite floors — sweat, water bottles, and varied footwear
• Changing room and shower floors — the highest-risk areas in most sports facilities
• Studio and dance floors — where high-grip is also a slip-resistance question (excessive grip causes injury too)
• Outdoor pedestrian areas — entrance steps, ramps, viewing terraces

The Slips Test advantage in sports

Slips Test is the slip resistance testing service of Surface Performance Ltd, a UKAS ISO/IEC 17025 accredited testing laboratory. Every test is performed to BS 7976-2 and BS EN 16165 and reported in a format that satisfies insurers, regulators, and — where it ever comes to it — the courts. Our technicians have tested thousands of UK sports facility floors and understand the practical realities of testing inside an active leisure environment.

Pool and barefoot environments

Barefoot environments are tested with the TRL slider (Slider 55), not the Four-S used for shod surfaces. The threshold structure is also different — barefoot floors typically require higher absolute PTVs to achieve equivalent slip risk because human skin has a lower coefficient of friction than rubber footwear. We are familiar with the procedure and report under both slider regimes.