Playing for EnglandThe road to a national play strategy

Adrian Voce

Director, Play England

FEPI

Playfair, 23 June , 2009

1. What is the Play Strategy?

2. How did we get here?

3. What does it mean?

4. What can we learn?

1. What is the Play Strategy?

10 year plan to make England the best country in the world for children to grow up.

One of five first principles: Children and young people need to enjoy their childhood as well as grow up prepared for adult life

December, 2007

Capital spending programme and consultation launched April 2008

10 year strategy published December 2008

The 2020 vision

• Every residential area has a variety of supervised and unsupervised places for play, free of charge;

• Local neighbourhoods are, and feel like, safe, interesting places to play;

• Routes to children’s play space are safe and accessible for all children and young people;

• Parks and open spaces are attractive and welcoming to children and young people, and are well-maintained and well-used;

The 2020 vision

• Children and young people have a clear stake in public space and their play is accepted by their neighbours;

• Children and young people behave in a way that respects other people and property;

• Children and young people and their families take an active role in the development of local play spaces; and

• Play spaces are attractive, welcoming, engaging and accessible for all local children and young people, children of both genders, disabled children and children from minority groups in the community.

Key elements

• £235m over three years• 30 Staffed adventure playgrounds• 3500 new or renewed play areas• Support for voluntary sector play providers• Mainstreaming inclusive play for disabled children• Focus on design quality, natural materials, landscaping

and intelligent risk management• Expanding and professionalising playwork

Key elements

• National performance indicator for children’s satisfaction with local play provision

• Guidance to planners• Cross-professional training• Support for volunteering and 3rd sector• Promoting play in schools and childcare• Major evaluation

Design principles for public play areas

Meet community needs

Make use of natural elements

Make use of natural elements

Build in opportunities to take risks and challenges

Well located

Have an element of flexibility built into the layout

Bespoke design

Imaginative use of equipment

Inclusive

• A rich and evolving environment where children can play all year round

• Children actively involved in creation and modification of a varied play landscape

• At the heart of the community• Staffed by skilled playworkers for all children• Free of charge, open access, no programme or

curriculum

Adventure playground essential elements

• Spontaneous free expression of the drive to play• Engagement in the full range of play types• Exploration of physical, social, emotional, imaginary

and sensory spaces• Free flow in giving and responding to ‘play cues’• A shared flexible space • A sense of magic – the child’s eye view of what is

special has precedence

Adventure playground essential elements

Adventure playgrounds

Statutory Guidance “Children’s Trusts will require a strategic approach to play

across the local area, with the full involvement of children, local communities and the third sector in decision-making. Delivering excellent outdoor play opportunities for all children will require working closely with the broader Local Strategic Partnership on issues such as town and highways planning and the management and maintenance of public space, in order to promote communities that are more child-friendly”.

Children’s Trusts: Statutory guidance on inter-agency

cooperation to improve well-being of children, young people and

their families

(DCSF, 2008)

Planners andDevelopers

Parks and

Leisure

Policeand streetwardens

Children’s Workforce

HousingAnd

RSLs

Public Health

Highways and

Transport

Schools and extended services

LandscapeArchitects

and Designers

PlayPartnership

Potential position of play partnership as part of the emerging governance structure for children’s trusts

Local Strategic

Partnership

Children’s Trust Board

Children’s Trust

Executive

Joint Commissionin

g Unit Operational Groups

Operational Groups

Operational and Advisory

Groups

Local Safeguarding

Children’s Board

Operational Groups

Operational Groups

Localities

Notegovernance arrangements vary

Play partnership

(Adapted from Joint Planning and Commissioning UnitHM Government, 2009)

Play within the strategic planning framework

Community

Strategy

Community

Strategy

Children &

Young People

Plan

Children &

Young People

Plan

Commissioning

Framework

Commissioning

Framework

Joint

Commissioning

Strategies

Joint

Commissioning

Strategies

Local Strategic

Partnership

Children’s Trust Board

Children’s Trust

Executive

Joint Commissioning Function

Joint Commissionin

g Unit

Local

(top-tier)

play strategy

Local

(top-tier)

play strategy

(Adapted from Joint Planning and Commissioning UnitHM Government, 2009)

2. How did

we get here?

• Chris Smith • Frank Dobson• Ken Livingstone

Ken Livingstone

First elected Mayor of London

Play Policy for London

Rt. Hon Chris Smith MP

Secretary of Culture, Media and Sport

• £200m lottery money for play• Labour election pledge, 2001

Rt. Hon Frank Dobson MPFormer Secretary of Health and

candidate for London Mayor

Chair of Coram;s Field’s children’s

playground, Central London

• National Play Review

The Play Review 2003 - 04

• Chair, Frank Dobson MP• Lead reviewer, Tim Gill• Nationwide consultation• Recommended:

• Allocated funding• Free, local, inclusive

provision / spaces• Improved planning• National support

Play England launched, April 2006

£15m over 5 years

£127m to local councils

Local Play Strategies

umzhollen:

Will talk about how we are influencing

change. Highlighting

activity with WM Cultural

Consortia, London Children’s services network,

SE physical Activity Forum,

London Olympic Boroughs and

others.

.

umzhollen:

Will talk about how we are influencing

change. Highlighting

activity with WM Cultural

Consortia, London Children’s services network,

SE physical Activity Forum,

London Olympic Boroughs and

others.

.

350 Events100,000 childrenRadio 4 Today programmeRadio 4 Woman’s HourRadio 5 LiveBBC1 The One ShowBBC1 Breakfast NewsThe Guardian commentGuardian Unlimited (on line) commentThe TimesThe ObserverThe Daily Telegraph

“Our three priorities when we take office must be education, education,

education

Tony Blair, October, 1996

The nature of playIts importance and benefits

‘

3. What does it mean?

WHEREAS, We, Children of America, are declared to have been born free and equal, and

WHEREAS, We are yet in bondage in this land of the free; are forced to toil the long day or the long night, with no control over the conditions of labor, as to health or safety or hours or wages, and with no right to the rewards of our service, therefore be it

RESOLVED,

1. That childhood is endowed with certain inherent and inalienable rights, among which are freedom from toil for daily bread; the right to play and to dream; the right to the normal sleep of the night season; the right to an education, that we may have equality of opportunity for developing all that there is in us of mind and heart.

Declaration of Dependence by the Children of America in Mines and Factories and Workshops Assembled, 1913

(Natural England, 2007)

Four generations of the Thomas family.

An overview of child well-being in rich countries

Unicef ‘report card 7’, 2007

“We must help families to find the balance between between education, care

and play”

Gordon Brown, January 2005

“we should (not) wrap them in cotton wool. Childhood is

a time for learning and exploring…My assumption is that if it snows, kids go

out and have snowball fights”

Ed Balls, August, 2007

"We all are having to balance, keeping our children safe …(with) letting them play and

learn about risk.

"That's best done in …decent playgrounds where kids can

play and be safe are brilliant. ”

Gordon Brown, January 2005

3. What does it mean and what can we learn?

1. Marshall the evidence

2. Know what you want (and don’t want)

3. Build alliances

4. Communicate (both ways)

5. Speak to power

6. Use the media

7. Be bold

8. Plan it and cost it