Q. A parent has requested that we do not allow their child to take part in sand or messy play because they are worried their child may get ill. I told them that it is an important part of our continuous provision, but they’re still not happy. What do other leaders do in these situations?
Claire Morgan, manager, Little Bear's, Wanstead Village
‘We had this same scenario less than a week ago. The main points I said to the parent was that the benefits of messy play in terms of learning far outweigh the risk of illness. Messy play helps all areas of development, including cognitive development, early mark-making and writing skills, personal, social and emotional skills and communication. They are learning all sorts of new words from interacting with the practitioners and through messy play. These are experiences that are seldom provided at home. If you put it like that, the parent may understand their child will miss a wealth of learning.
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