Nursery World - 200m boost for play facilities

'Would this be good enough for my children?' This is the question that those with future responsibility for spending 200m on play projects should ponder, said Frank Dobson MP at the launch of the Government-sponsored review of play facilities last month. The Government has promised to give 200m of National Lottery money for new and improved children's play facilities and the aim of the review, Getting Serious about Play: a Review of Child's Play is to consider how the money can best be spent.

The Government has promised to give 200m of National Lottery money for new and improved children's play facilities and the aim of the review, Getting Serious about Play: a Review of Child's Play is to consider how the money can best be spent.

However, the authors have been non-prescriptive, saying only that 80 per cent of the funds are to be allocated in line with local levels of child deprivation and - in order to make the money stretch further - that the funds should be tied in with other developments such as refurbishment of a park. 'It is for ministers to decide whether to concentrate the money on a limited number of the worst-off areas or to allocate some to every local authority,' said Mr Dobson.

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