CHILDREN MISSING OUT ON THE GREAT OUTDOORS
Parents unaware of
local outdoor play areas
Savlon®, Play England, Natural England and Big Lottery Fund
join forces to launch an online nature play map
1 August 2011
As over 500 events get underway this week to celebrate
Playday, the national day for play (3 August), new research from
Savlon and Play England shows that over 60 per cent of parents
would like their children to play outdoors more often than they
currently do. Alarmingly, however, one in seven parents don't know
where their nearest natural play space, such as a park or
playground, is.
Following the recent news that 60 per cent of local
authorities report cuts to their play services1, Savlon
and Play England, in conjunction with Natural England, are calling
upon families to share their safe local outdoor playing spaces,
with the launch of an interactive
online map.
To coincide with the launch, Savlon and Play England
have released new research which shows that while many of
parents' fondest childhood memories are of playing with friends in
the park or garden and going on adventures, the outdoor world seems
to be out of reach for many of today's children. 1 in 5
children have never played in fields and farmland and
1 in 6 have never played in woods and forests -
this compares to nearly 60 per cent of adults who
played there every week when they were children.
The research reveals that it is a myth that children prefer
indoor based play activities such as computer games, with the
majority actually preferring to play outside. Playing at a beach or
river (88%), playing in a park (79%) riding a bike (77%) and
playing ball games (76%) are overwhelmingly more popular with
children than playing computer games. For parents, however, safety
concerns mean that 1 in 4 would prefer their child
to play on a computer than climb a tree, and 1 in
5 prefer computer-based play than allowing them to play
out in fields or farmland.
Adrian Voce, Co-Director of Play England, said:
"Most parents know that children are curious about, and love to
play outdoors. This is a deeply instinctive part of human nature
and a vital part of healthy childhoods. We need to ensure that all
children can access local green spaces to play, enabling them to
have everyday adventures outside. To do this we need to support
parents to help them feel confident to let children play
out."
"This research we conducted with Savlon shows that parents are
concerned about the lack of freedom their children have. 65 per
cent of parents believe children today have less freedom to roam
than free-range chickens! The online play map we are
launching today will encourage families and whole communities to
make the most of their local play spaces, uncover new ones and
enable their children to enjoy the freedom and adventure of outdoor
play that most adults recall as among the best moments of their own
childhoods".
Austin Healey, ex-England rugby star and father of four
daughters under the age of ten, said: "I see a noticeable
difference in my girls when they haven't played outside. Their
independence, energy and creativity levels are stifled. This
Playday I encourage all families to find a local play space, be it
a field, common or playground nearby and celebrate the opportunity
to play outside and have an adventure."
Play England's interactive
play map will feature the best places for children to engage
with nature, including playgrounds and green spaces across England
and aims to encourage families to explore new local territory and
play freely outdoors. The map is jointly funded by Savlon and
Natural England as part of its Access to Nature programme (part of
the Big Lottery Fund's Changing Spaces initiative).
ENDS
For more information or interviews, please
contact:
3 Monkeys Communications
Charlotte Spencer: 020 7009 3127 / charlotte.spencer@3-monkeys.co.uk
Samantha Henry: 020 7009 3813 / Samantha.henry@3-monkeys.co.uk
Alexis Bicknell: 020 7009 3133 / alexis.bicknell@3-monkeys.co.uk
savlon@3-monkeys.co.uk
Notes to editors
Research was carried out by OnePoll in June 2011 for Savlon and
Play England, amongst 2,000 parents with children under 16 years
old in the UK and 2,000 children between the age of 6 and 15.
1. Daycare Trust's tenth annual Holiday
Childcare Costs Survey, sponsored by Computershare Voucher Services
(CVS), is compiled from figures submitted by local authorities in
England, Scotland and Wales. It compares by region the cost
and availability of childcare provision during the school holidays,
and is being released as part of National Childcare Week (11-18
July 2011).
About Savlon
Savlon is the UK’s leading antiseptic first aid brand and has
been providing parents with everything they need to treat their
child’s minor injuries for over 50 years1. Savlon
continues to lead the way in developing a range of products that
help to cleanse, treat and protect. For further information visit
http://www.savlon.co.uk/
1. IRI data Value sales February MAT 2011
About Playday
Playday is the national day for play,
traditionally held on the first Wednesday in August. As well as an
annual celebration of children’s right to play, Playday is a
campaign that highlights the importance of play in children’s
lives. Playday is coordinated by Play England, part of leading
children's charity the National Children's Bureau (NCB), working in
partnership with PlayBoard Northern Ireland, Play Scotland and Play
Wales. On Playday thousands of children and young people get out to
play at hundreds of locally organised celebrations - from
small-scale neighbourhood get-togethers to large-scale public
events.
About Play England
Play Englandis part of the leading national
children's charity NCB, and campaigns for all children to have the
freedom and space to play throughout childhood. As the national
organisation for children’s play, Play England works with all those
who have an impact on children's lives to support and champion play
as an essential part of childhood. For further information or to
talk to a media spokesperson, call 020 7843 6045 or 07721 097033 or
visit www.playengland.org.uk.
The National Children's Bureau's (NCB) mission
is to advance the well-being of all children and young people
across every aspect of their lives. As the leading national
charity which supports children, young people and families, and
those who work with them, across England and Northern Ireland, we
focus on identifying and communicating high impact, community and
family-centred solutions. We work with organisations from across
the voluntary, statutory and private sectors through our membership
scheme and through the sector-led specialist networks and
partnership programmes that operate under our charitable status
http://www.ncb.org.uk/
About Access to Nature
1. Access to Nature is run by Natural England
and is part of the Big Lottery Fund’s Changing Spaces programme
launched in November 2005 to help communities enjoy and improve
their local environments.
2. Natural England manages this £28.75 million
Lottery-funded programme on behalf of a consortium of twelve
national environmental organisations comprising BTCV, British
Waterways, Environment Agency, Forestry Commission, Greenspace,
Groundwork UK, Land Restoration Trust, The National Trust, Natural
England, RSPB, the Wildlife Trusts and the Woodland Trust.
3. Through this programme, it is Natural
England’s ambition to create opportunities for people from all
backgrounds to have greater access to our natural environment and
bring a lasting change to their awareness and understanding as well
as improved links to the natural world, which many of us can take
for granted.
4. Access to Nature closed to applications in
May 2010 but for further information about the programme visit
www.naturalengland.org.uk/accesstonature
5. The Big Lottery Fund is the largest of the
National Lottery good cause distributors and has been rolling out
grants to health, education, environment and charitable causes
across the UK since its inception in June 2004. For further
information about the Big Lottery Fund, its programmes and awards
visit http://www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/