Opinion: Editor's view

One of the most popular and inspiring sessions at Nursery World's Early Years Foundation Stage conferences (in Birmingham in February, and in London last week) has been the lively and impassioned demonstration from Michael Pettaval, head of Randolph Beresford Early Years Centre, of how essential outdoor play is to children's well-being. He shows the children taking risks, coping with challenge, discovering, and just being.

This week's Nursery World continues the theme in several features. In 'Let's explore ... poetry, rhyme and song outdoors' (pages 18-20), Helen Bromley looks at how the oral tradition began outside, and at how you can use counting rhymes, skipping games, circle songs and more for playground fun and learning.

And on pages 16-17, Everton Children's Centre explains how it has developed regular heuristic play sessions outdoors for its two- to four-year-olds. You only need to look at the photographs of the children's obvious joy and involvement as they use sticks, boxes and hosepipes to see the creativity, imagination and co-operation that is being fostered. The weather is pretty lousy, but they have their waterproofs on and they really don't care about the lack of sunshine.

And yet many young children are still not getting the opportunities they need to play and learn outdoors throughout the day, in all sorts of weathers. It is vital that all children, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds who may not have access to a garden, can be given this chance. It would make a huge difference to their learning and development, future attainment and well-being.