Leisure Matting

What is Leisure Matting?

Leisure Mats are any type of matting and flooring that have been designed for use in leisure centres and recreational environments such as gyms, playgrounds, swimming pools and spas. They offer additional safety for users by improving grip, especially in wet areas, or by creating a cushioned surface in play areas or gyms.

Our detailed guide below offers more information regarding the use of leisure mats and the different types that are available from First Mats.

Leisure Matting for wet areas

Wet area mats are slip-resistant plastic-based matting which has been designed to limit and prevent health and safety dangers in wet rooms like showers or changing rooms. 

There are various important features that make wet area leisure mats work effectively in their environments:

Drainage holes – Our AquaDeck tiles are made up with thousands of small drainages holes– preventing any water from building up on the surface and allowing any liquid underneath to be drained away with ease.  Additionally, the studs on the underside of the mat encourage greater drainage to further reduce the risk of slipping on wet floor surfaces.

Bacterial and fungal prevention – Our high-quality wet area matting is coated with a thin micro-plastic substance that actively resists fungal and bacterial growth, and reduces foot odours – an important feature in public and privately-owned pools.

Modularity (Tiles) – Our AquaDeck Shower Tiles, for example, are semi-modular wet area tiles available in packs of 9, measuring 30cm x 30cm per tile. They easily clip together, making them suitable for floors of most sizes and shapes. Bevelled edges can be purchased separately, including female and male edges (each tile features two female and two male adjoining edges), along with corner pieces to complete the mats.

Comfortable surface – Wet area mats not only need to perform well in wet, low-traction environments but must also  provide comfort to the users. All our wet room matting is designed to be as comfortable as possible for users with bare feet.

Cross-Ribbed Design (SlipProtect) – The cross-ribbed design of our SlipProtect wet room mat offers high levels of grip and safety ensuring maximum barefoot comfort.

Made from PVC – Wet area leisure mats are made from a unique blend of heavy-duty PVC. The main benefits of using PVC for our AquaDeck and SlipProtect wet room mats include:

    Durability - PVC is a widely-used substance for matting in the leisure industries due to the core strength and wear-resistance over time without sacrificing portability
    Versatility - PVC is an extremely versatile material used in many commercial, domestic and industrial applications.    
    Lightweight - The low weight density of PVC allows ease of installation and movability in any given environment.

Easy cleaning and maintenance – Wet area leisure mats can attain high volumes of foot traffic depending on the environment and application, so it is important for the mats to be easy to keep clean and hygienic. One of the easiest methods involves using high-pressured water washer to remove any excess liquids and debris from the mat.
What Types of Wet Area Leisure Matting First Mats Offer?

Currently we offer two types of leisure mats for wet areas. These are the Modular AquaDeck Tiles (starting from £36.50 for a pack of 9) and the SlipProtect Slatted Wet Room Mat (starting at £395.00 for the smallest standard size, or £0.53 per cm).

Styles of wet area mats -  There are two main types of wet area shower mats - duckboards and tiles that clip together. The duckboards or cross-ribbed PVC mats can be purchased in custom lengths and are available in a range of attractive colours.
Rubber-based Leisure Matting

First Mats also offers a range of rubber-based matting for use in gyms or outdoor play areas. These help to absorb impact shocks, protecting both the users and their equipment, and offer a grippy, level surface in all conditions.
Gym Mats

At First Mats, you can find a choice of individual and interlocking mats designed for commercial and home gyms. These are constructed from dense high-grade rubbers that offer incredible shock absorption and durability.

Our range includes the Pro-Gym Interlocking Floor Mat, which allows you to effortlessly create a safe and sturdy floor covering, through to the Heavy Duty Large Gym Mat which is ideal for heavy free-weight lifting areas or machines.
Leisure Mats for Playgrounds

For any children’s outdoor playgrounds in schools, parks and leisure centres, one of the top priorities parents express is the safety of their child on the premises. Rubber playground mats are engineered to exponentially increase the safety of visitors within grass and concrete-based play areas. 

Most commonly, playground mats will be placed on slippery ramps, grassy patches and either next to or underneath playground apparatus. Suitable for both indoor and outdoor environments, these mats normally feature a smooth or honeycomb design that both grip to a variety of surfaces, providing great traction and slip resistance. Other key features of playground matting include:
        Fall protection– Our playground mats have been tested positive for “Critical Fall Height” (CFH) protection with ranges from 0.6m through to 1.8m. CFH refers to the maximum height of falls from play equipment to the ground.
        Lay loose installation – Playground mats are extremely easy to install with no tools or experience needed. Simply placing the mat down into any existing surface will do the job, upgrading the safety of the area instantly.
        Slip resistance – Most of our rubber mats for playgrounds conform to the Slip Resistance Test EN 13552 Category R10 confirming guaranteed safety for your visitors and children. The rubber is weighted, and weather-resistant.
        High levels of erosion control – When placed in grassy or earthy areas, our mats will not collapse easily. They offer high levels of erosion and wear resistance in all weathers.

Playground Mats Buying Guide

We currently supply 2 types of playground matting – the PlayProtect and the PlaySafe.

The PlayProtect is a multi-purpose heavy-duty rubber playground mat that benefits from the iconic honeycomb design and easy lay loose installation.

The PlaySafe is an interlocking tile system that has built-in 22mm drainage holes and corresponding male and female edges, making it ideal for irregular areas.