Slides aren't just for playgrounds – they can offer escape routes from meetings or easy access to your kitchen. This week's roundup from our Pinterest boards showcases 10 homes and offices that find inventive uses for them.

Tokyo house, Japan, by Level Architects 

Japanese studio Level Architects connected the three floors of this Tokyo house with a slide with rounded walls. The enclosed slide encircles one side of the rectangular house and the staircase wraps around the other.

Find out more about this Tokyo house ›

Lego PMD, Denmark, Rosan Bosch and Rune Fjord

A metal slide provides an escape route from a meeting at the Denmark office of toy brand Lego. Designers Rosan Bosch and Rune Fjord also incorporated block-like display stands, model-building tables and a library of Lego pieces into the open-plan office.

Find out more about this Lego PMD ›

Panorama house, South Korea, by Moon Hoon

A wooden slide is slotted into a combined staircase and bookshelf in this South Korean house, which was designed Seoul studio Moon Hoon to include various spaces where the owner's four children could play.

Find out more about Panorama house ›

Microsoft Headquarters, Austria, Innocad 

Microsoft followed the trend for offices like playgrounds with its Vienna headquarters. Austrian architects Innocad installed a metallic slide, a hunting lodge-themed meeting room and of course games rooms.

Find out more about the Microsoft Headquarters ›

Townhouse B14, Germany, by XTH-Berlin 

XTH-Berlin inserted staggered floors throughout this Berlin townhouse to maximise the amount of living space in the building's 12-metre height. Sloping floors function as slides to provide fast access from one floor to the next.

Find out more about this Townhouse B14 ›

Copenhagen community centre, Denmark, MVRDV and Adept

Metallic slides, mini mazes, fireman's poles and climbing walls all feature inside this Copenhagen community centre. The 3,2000-square-metre building functions like a giant play park, which MVRDV and Adept designed to encourage adults to be more active.

Find out more about the Copenhagen community centre ›

Playhouse, Indonesia, by Aboday

A spiralling concrete slide provides easy access from the children's bedroom down to the kitchen of this house near Jakarta, which was designed by Indonesian architects Aboday.

Find out more about Playhouse ›

Wooden meeting rooms, France, Estelle Vincent  

A pale blue slide provides a quick exit from this timber meeting room, which was created by architect Estelle Vincent for a Parisian office block.

Find out more about these wooden meeting rooms ›

Skyhouse, USA, by David Hotson and Ghislaine Vinas

A tubular steel slide plummets through four storeys inside this penthouse apartment in New York by architect David Hotson. The slide comes to an end in the living room, where it fans out to create a funhouse-style mirror.

Find out more about Skyhouse ›

MR Design Office, Japan, by Schemata Architecture Office 

A slide is hidden behind the mirrored wall in this Tokyo office by Japanese studio Schemata Architecture Office. The cylindrical shoot can be accessed by climbing a ladder up to the top of the bathroom and storage area.

Find out more about MR Design Office ›

Follow Dezeen on Pinterest ›