Free Play Network text only homepage
This page with Graphics | News | About the Free Play Network | Join | Links | Search | PLAYLINK
Policy & Consultations | Playwork in Practice | Adventure Play | Play & Design
Department for Culture, Media and Sport, 184/2002, 15 October 2002
Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell and Education Minister Catherine Ashton today launched a review of children's play across the United Kingdom, to be chaired by the Rt Hon Frank Dobson MP.
The review will identify existing high quality play opportunities and facilities for children and young people aged 0-16; promote good practice and develop quality standards; and make recommendations about how these can best be extended to meet the needs of children, families and local communities.
High quality, safe and stimulating play opportunities can improve children's personal development and health, give them the freedom and independence to learn valuable lessons in life, and provide them with attractive, accessible facilities that offer more than just hanging around the streets.
The review is being jointly sponsored by DCMS and DfES and is being led by Tim Gill, the director of the Children's Play Council.
Announcing the start of the Review at Coram's Fields, a showcase children's play area in central London, Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell said:
"This Review is much needed - we must look to reclaim for children and young people a part of their childhood that is in real danger of being lost. Too many play facilities are run-down, in the wrong place, or simply too dull to keep children's interest.
"Children need quality space to learn how to look after themselves as they grow up. We are all very aware of the importance of ensuring the safety of children in public places, especially in the light of recent tragic events. It is also vital that young people are given a degree of independence as they get older.
"Young people want to play and spend time outside and it is important that we provide suitable spaces for them. Alongside learning more about themselves and each other, play facilities will help keep children fit and healthy, help tackle the growing issue of obesity and provide parents with places where they are happy to let their children spend their free time."
Education Minister Catherine Ashton backed this, saying:
"Active children tend to be happy children. We must ensure that children are given opportunities to play out in safe places with stimulating facilities in their local communities, childcare or early years settings and during their school breaks because the fun of playing out is an essential part of early physical and emotional development.
"Playing together encourages children to understand and respect difference. It encourages their curiosity and creativity, gives them a sense of self control so important for building resilience in life and makes them more confident.
"Play is a such an obvious and natural part of childhood yet too many children are missing out. This Review will investigate where the gaps are."
The Rt Hon Frank Dobson MP, who is Chair of the Coram's Fields Trust, said:
"I was delighted when I was asked to chair this Review because I believe that all children need the opportunity to play and to do it safely. Enjoyable play is both a part of childhood and a part of growing up. All children need the opportunity both for organised play and, equally important, for just larking about.
"Safe havens like Coram's Fields aren't just good for children and young people. They are also good for their parents who can feel secure in the knowledge that their off-spring are not in harm's way.
"Too many children, particularly in deprived neighbourhoods, don't have the top quality places to play that they are entitled to expect. This review should make a start on the long process of putting that right."
The review of children's play opportunities will also link to the wider agenda of how we can improve the quality of our public spaces - the streets, parks and green spaces that make up the local neighbourhood. It is a major stepping-stone in considering the play needs of children and young people within their local environment. It will also link with Government initiatives such as Sure Start, the National Childcare Strategy and the expansion of early years education.
1. The review will run from October 2002 for around 6-8 months. At the end, Government will publish a document which will set out the findings of the review and propose a strategy that will feed into the planned policy directions for the New Opportunities Fund on children's play.
2. Tim Gill, Director of the Children's Play Council, will be seconded into Government to undertake the review, funded by DfES.
3. The Rt Hon Frank Dobson MP has chaired the independent charity which runs Coram's Fields children's playground for more than 20 years. His own children used the playground when they were growing up. So like other local parents he experienced at first hand the huge benefit of knowing that in Coram's Fields they had somewhere safe to play.
4. The review will include an extensive consultation process across the UK, involving both live consultation events and written consultation and taking into account the views of parents and children. DCMS and DfES will work closely with the devolved administrations to ensure that the interests of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are fully reflected in the strategy, and with other interested Government Departments, notably the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. The consultation process will also draw on the advice of experts in the field.
5. The Government's recent cross-cutting review on improving the quality of public space found that better provision for children and young people regularly features amongst the top ten measures which people think would improve the quality of their local area. The Government will be producing a strategy document later this autumn that will set out its vision for a better local environment. The strategy will also respond to the recommendations of the Urban Green Spaces Taskforce.
Department for Culture, Media and Sport
2-4 Cockspur Street
London SW1Y 5DH
DCMS Website: http://www.culture.gov.uk.
© 2003 PLAYLINK.