Free-to-access, public playgrounds are the most common places for children to play according to a new national survey from the University of Reading.
In the largest study of play in Britain, children on average spent more time playing in playgrounds than any other place.
The British Children’s Play Survey was conducted with a nationally representative sample of 1919 adult respondents who had a child aged 5-11 years. The survey asked parents in April 2020 to respond about normal life before Covid-19 restrictions.
Away from home and in the garden, playgrounds are the most popular spaces for outdoor play at least once a week, closely followed by green spaces, and they are also the third most adventurous place for children’s play.
The paper’s lead author, Professor Helen Dodd, says: “We can see that playgrounds and green areas are critical spaces for children’s play, particularly outdoor, adventurous play. It is therefore crucial that all children have access to spaces like these for their development and wellbeing. Providing the spaces is not enough though, urban planning must take into account how children and families will travel to and access these spaces and they need to be engaging and interesting places for children’s play.”
Chair of the Association of Play Industries (API), Mark Hardy, says: “The study confirms the essential role that public play areas have in the physical and mental health of children. Playgrounds are vital community assets which have a significant impact on children’s health and wellbeing. Recent years have seen a sharp decline in the number of playgrounds. These community spaces are hugely under-funded and hundreds are disappearing. There is now an urgent need for sustained investment in a UK-wide network of playgrounds to protect and enhance children’s health.”
Shrewsbury Town Council conducted research showing a dramatic rise in footfall in public play facilities over the course of the pandemic, demonstrating how important these assets are to children and local communities. The SLCC, which represents the chief officers to over 5,000 town, parish and community councils, are calling on the Government to recognise the importance of play in exercise, provide financial support for shared public spaces and long-term legacy funding for parks and playgrounds.
A growing number of leading academics are also calling for children to be placed at the heart of the nation’s recovery post-pandemic, with experts calling for a ‘summer of play’.
“There has never been a time when playgrounds have been so important,” says Mark. “They are key in helping children to recover from a year of restrictions which have forced them indoors. The Government’s pledges to ‘Build Back Better’ and ‘Level Up’ must include children, with investment in a sustainable national network of public play spaces before hundreds more are lost for good. For children living in the most disadvantaged areas and those in the 1 in 8 UK households without gardens, playgrounds are their lifeline.”
The API’s recent campaign shows how playgrounds are a unique public service which benefits all children and the substantial role they have in communities:
- For children in the 1 in 8 UK households without gardens, playgrounds are often the only outdoor space in which to play.
- Playgrounds are spaces created just for children – a rare thing in today’s world.
- Playgrounds are a free public service and open to all children.
- Playgrounds are the heart of communities. Just like the local shop, pub or school, playgrounds connect people every day.
- Playgrounds are inclusive. Children from all walks of life and all abilities play there.
- Children play out more when they have a playground nearby.
- Playgrounds help tackle childhood obesity, mental health and sleep problems.
