The API are joining the #SummerOfPlay campaign to give children the space, time, and freedom to play this summer as the Covid-19 restrictions are eased.
After everything children have been through over the last year, organisations have been asked to sign the pledge to support children’s play this summer.
For more than a year, children across the UK have been forced to spend time indoors, inactive and isolated from friends due to Covid-19 restrictions. It is not surprising that we have seen unprecedented increases in children’s mental health problems and loneliness, alongside reduced physical activity.
The campaign is being co-ordinated by Save the Children, Play England, Play Scotland, Play Wales, PlayBoard NI, playfirstuk and Playing Out. Experts, charities and leading organisations are urgently calling for play to be central to children’s recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.
Free-to-access, public playgrounds are the most common places for children to play, the largest study of play in Britain has found. Children spend more time playing in playgrounds than any other place.
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.
Organisations and individuals can pledge to support a #SummerOfPlay. Play is not simply fun for children, it is vital for their development and physical and mental health.
