Section one Objectives and methodology

1. Section oneObjectives and methodology

2. Research objectives To gain a deeper understanding of children’s and parents’ perspective on play and play provision (quantity, quality, and accessibility) To understand the extent to which the type and range of play provision influences children’s and parents’ attitudes to play To inform communications with children, parents and carers on play provision in terms of tone, language and terms they use themselves To assess how to make existing play facilities more appealing To gauge what children and parents want in terms of new play facilities (quality, supervision, location, opening times, transport) To understand any gender differences in play experiences To learn about what parents know in terms of the benefits of different kinds of play

3. Overview of sample Eight triads with kids Four with girls and four with boys 8 to 9 9 to 10 10 to 11 11 to 12 Four parents groups Three with mums and one with dads In four locations: Dudley, NE Somerset , Telscombe Cliffs and Slough In February 2008

4. Section twoSummary of findings

5. What is play? The term ‘outside play’ spans a diverse range of activities, reaching beyond traditional definitions • This has implications for how the term is defined and brought to life in communications • Need to be specific about the type of play being communicated • ‘Outside play’ gives children a sense of freedom and exhilaration they seldom feel in other areas of their life • Other benefits include: • Social interaction • Physical exercise and risk taking • Learning about the world and personal responsibility

6. The positives of outside play • Kids love being outside it makes them feel ‘alive and free’ • Emotional benefits are more top of mind than the physical ones Emotional Happy Excited Fun Freedom (and from adults) Social Playing with friends Communicating Making new friends (under 9s) Interaction with others (genders, ages) Physical Raring to go - burning off energy Fitness Freedom Fresh air Learning Sense of responsibility Independence ...about the world around them Road and cycling safety

7. Gender differences Boys are rougher and like to get messy and muddy, girls worry about their hair & talk more (Girl 10, Slough) • Clear gender differences emerged implications for range of resources available • If they don’t have access to the same gender playmates in their local communities there is evidence of more mixed gender playing - always better to play with someone • As they enter the tween years a more definite gender division seems to emerge with regard to the appeal of ‘outside play’ • Some girls appear to become less interested in it, preferring to spend their time talking/supporting and shopping with their friends • - Organised ‘indoor’ activities are more likely to capture their interest Boys’ play is perceived as more active, and associated with sport/free play more than equipment • More competitive, team games, fear factor, more rough Risk taking Girls are linked with more passive, dialogue based interaction (unless they are tomboys) • Imagination/role play, falling out with friends, worrying about how they look Emotional & creative

8. Concerns Parents recognise the benefits of children playing outside but have a range of concerns: • ‘Stranger danger’ (paedophiles, abduction, abuse etc) • Bullying from older teens is causing anxiety around letting their kids ‘out to play’ on their own • Lack of community values and support • Less pronounced in the rural areas which had a stronger sense of community • Younger children (up to 9/10 years) are always accompanied by an adult when playing outside, unless they are playing in their back garden (Assuming that they have one)* • Parents deferring letting their children out on their own until 11/12 years (sometimes older) • The notable exception are children living in rural and semi rural areas who have more freedom at a younger age to explore the area within a short distance of their home

9. Concerns There is a perception that their children are safer in more public and busy places • And that parks/open spaces can be more sinister places, where their children can be exposed/ vulnerable to more trouble • Or get into trouble themselves • Parents appear to be more comfortable with allowing their children the freedom to go to shopping centres/cinemas with their friends, than they are allowing them to go to parks/open spaces unaccompanied by an adult Shopping centres - the alternative playground

10. Access Most children in this sample had access to a range of parks and open spaces Whilst the quality and range of equipment varied between locations, the overwhelming factors affecting usage were The presence/threatened presence of intimidating teenagers The state of the equipment, which could often be ‘out of order’ as vandalised Parents and children offer clear guidance regarding what they want from parks More naturally inspired play rather than structured man-made equipment (wood, water, trees) Equipment which encourages risk taking in a safe environment Segregated by age Well maintained and updated Secured at night to protect from vandalism

11. Current provision Currently, children under the age of 8/9 years were felt to be well catered for Swings, slides, roundabouts Bright colours Physical, exploratory, imaginative play However, parents and children highlighted a gap in provision for 9 to13 year olds (tweens) For this age range there was a call for: Activities and equipment that are mentally and physically challenging Boys strongly supported the idea of astroturf for football and for some, skate parks (particularly Telscombe) In essence, tweens are looking for ‘assault courses’ rather than ‘playgrounds’

12. How they find out about outdoor play provision Parents talk to other parents… • They tend to find out about what’s going on from each other, especially if they live locally • Including the good parks to go to and those to avoid • Pester power is also a source of information • None recalled finding out about parks and outdoor play provision through local media • LA websites, leaflets, local paper, radio • Either receiving information or seeking it out • If there has been communication relating to play it seems parents in the sample were unaware of it Word of mouth is the main source of information- parents rely on others to find out about new and exciting play areas

13. The ideal It is better to keep it separate, so we can see which part is for us and so we don’t knock the little ones over as well (Boy 12, Telscombe) Consistent themes across the four locations Free play rather than structured • A good range of equipment suitable for varied ages • Clearly segregated but still close to each other (so parents can still see older kids if need to) • There is a preference (for the over 6s) to have more natural things to enable varied free play rather than more structured equipment • Wood preferred to plastic • Metal disliked by many as it rusts, gets hot and cold • Parents and older children (9+) are keen for facilities that encourage an element of risk taking and challenge • Climbing, jumping, swinging, sliding etc • All kids enjoy having access to private spaces e.g. Tree houses, dens • Safe water play that allows kids hands on interaction e.g. Sprinklers, shallow pools Children are looking for adventure style playgrounds that fuel their imaginations

14. Supported by... Good toilet facilities Especially needed for little ones Good maintenance Of equipment and environment (Park keepers) Cafe Something for parents No dog mess Ensuring it all gets cleared up! Investment To keep well maintained To ‘ring the changes’ Protection/security Locked up at night , high gates Monitored (Police CCTV) Opening times Everyday of the year From ‘dawn to dusk’ In current social climate they cannot imagine their ideal remaining ideal for very long!

15. Choices by age and gender Under 5s Exploratory play Imaginative play 6 to 9s Physical play Co-operative play Social play Achievable challenges 10 to 13s Challenges Fitness, agility Endurance Social Equipment Slides Swings Tunnels Water Sand Wendy houses Equipment Slides Swings Tunnels Climbing wall Trampolines (Girl bias) Camps to build/log cabin Tree climbing Aerial run way Equipment Monkey bars Assault courses Ramps for bikes and Skateboards Astroturf Chill out areas Most facilities cater well for this age range As children grow kids demand more mentally and physically challenging activities Want choices of more grown up equipment, which looks and feels different to a ‘childish’ playground

16. Their choices Brilliant! Boy 10, Dudley Good flat pitches for football and astroturf with flood lights for matches at night! Boy 11, Wells Being outside and climbing trees is really exciting, you feel a bit like a bird Girl 8, Telscombe

17. Their choices It looks like a climbing wall, I went on one of those once and it was brilliant Boy 12, Slough We can sit around and chat on that Girl 12 Dudley Things like this are good for older kids like us Girl 11, NE Somerset Looks like it would be a bit of a challenge to climb Boy 12, Telscombe

18. Their choices Looks a bit bumpy and dangerous! Boy 12, Telscombe Somewhere to sit with your mates Girl 12 Dudley Stuff like that would be good all around the park, you could have like a treasure hunt or problems that you had to solve as you went around Boy 10, NE Somerset Kids love climbing through tunnels and hiding Mum , Slough

19. Their choices This looks a bit boring as it doesn’t look like they can get involved with the water in any way Mum , NE Somerset We do this when we go to my grandma’s in the country and it is brilliant, we don’t catch real fish, we just pretend to Girl 9, Slough This type of thing would need to be supervised, other wise they would abuse it Dad , Dudley

20. Their choices There are drug needles in the park, I have seen one in the sand pit Boy 11, Dudley It look dangerous and made out of hard steel which would hurt if you fell on it Mum , Telscombe Too many primary colours for older kids, they would probably prefer camouflage Dad , Dudley Dull and boring, I would rather be in the woods Girl 11, NE Somerset

21. Play rangers Play rangers prompted some interest amongst parents and children Particular areas of interest include Offering ideas and stimulation Supervision and safety Also scope to reach out and engage tweens and young teens However, many questions arise regarding how they will operate. Any communication will need to deal with these issues before parents/children can emotionally connect with this idea and think of getting/letting their children get involved Key issues which need addressing include: Their qualifications to work with children How they will manage activities and how children can get involved How the scheme has been developed and piloted How the scheme caters for children of different ages and genders