Nursery World - Analysis: The need for community play

Children ought to be seen and heard playing in public places, an expert study urges. Play sector figures talk to Mary Evans about the implications for society.

Public spaces in Britain are increasingly being built for the convenience of the car and the shopping trip at the expense of children, who are being excluded from their communities and deprived of valuable play opportunities, according to a new report by the think-tank Demos, Seen and Heard: Reclaiming the public realm with children and young people.

The study, commissioned by Play England, warns that children are losing the freedom to roam and play independently. It urges the Government to rethink town planning to prevent children from being segregated out of public areas.

'There is no central Government strategy on play,' says Becky McLauchlan, campaigns manager of Play England. 'There has been no money, motivation or funding to increase children's play opportunities. We now have Big Lottery Funding going out to the regions, but that should be seen as a starting point. Central Government needs to do more.

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