A primary school teacher has been left empty-handed after a judge dismissed her £60,000 compensation claim against the adventure company Go Ape, where she suffered a horrific leg fracture on a slide marketed for children as young as three.
Court Rejects Claim Over "Inherent Risks"
Rosemary Mountain, 50, who teaches year one and two pupils, sued Adventure Forest Ltd, trading as Go Ape, following the accident at their Black Park adventure site near Slough in February 2019. However, Central London County Court Judge Luke Ashby threw out the case, stating that injuries are an inherent risk in adventure playground environments.
The Accident on the "Big Bounce" Slide
The incident occurred as Mrs Mountain was visiting the park with her husband and young children during half term. The family decided to use the "Big Bounce" netted fabric tube slide, approximately 10 to 12 metres long, as an exit route from the Nets Kingdom area. The court heard this area was designed for children aged three to twelve.
Mrs Mountain described how her trainer became caught in the slide's fabric about three-quarters of the way down. "You are not really sliding on it, you are just dropping," she testified. "Somehow it got snagged on the side. I kept moving and it broke horribly."
Her leg was dragged underneath her, resulting in what she described as a "severe" fracture. She told the court her shin was "bent in half at 45 degrees" and the limb was so badly broken it became "floppy" and "wobbly."
Life-Changing Injuries and Legal Arguments
Following the accident, Mrs Mountain had to be cut from the netting at the slide's bottom before hospital treatment. She described herself as previously an "outdoorsy adventurous person," but said the injury required extensive surgery and left her with chronic pain. She is unlikely to return to running or her former active lifestyle.
In her claim, she argued the slide was "too dangerous" and "not reasonably safe for operation." The slide has since been replaced.
However, Go Ape's lawyers denied all liability, insisting the Nets Kingdom was safe, installed by industry specialists, and regularly inspected. They highlighted that Mrs Mountain had signed a disclaimer acknowledging injury risks before entering the area.
Judge's Ruling on Social Utility and Safety Standards
Dismissing the claim, Judge Ashby acknowledged the severity of the injury but emphasised the broader context. "There are inherent risks in undertaking adventure activities in adventure parks even when following instructions," he stated.
The judge noted Go Ape operates many well-known adventure parks across the UK and is "not an amateur outfit." He said the installation reflected professional standards and advice.
Regarding safety, the court heard there had been approximately eight or nine reported incidents where people caught their feet on the slide prior to Mrs Mountain's accident, out of an estimated 100,000 uses. "The reality is you have a handful of minor incidents on this slide before the accident," Judge Ashby observed.
He added: "It is socially desirable for adventure parks to be able to operate... There is a social utility to these types of activities. Of course that doesn't mean that the defendant can throw caution to the wind and must take such measures to assure that its users are reasonably safe."
Concluding, he said: "It was a nasty injury and it was a very unpleasant accident, but that is what it was. This claim is dismissed."
Mrs Mountain expressed her dismay outside court, noting the activity was described as suitable for three-year-olds. "I didn't expect to break my leg in the way that I did," she said. "I know it says it's risky, but it didn't look risky and it said it was for young children."
