Kids are so over-scheduled that doctors are being told to prescribe play says new American report. Children have a right to play and it is absolutely fundamental to their wellbeing. That we now have a situation where play, the ‘default setting’ for children, is having to be prescribed, is in itself alarming and disappointing. We all have a role in ensuring children are active but it’s important we don’t organise activities too much. Children’s lives are already highly structured – they need time to just ‘be’ and, more often than not, if you allow children the chance to do this, they’ll play. It is through play that children learn about others, the world around them and about themselves. The least we can do is give them spaces to do just that.The right kind of playground can transform lives – drawing kids outdoors, tempting them away from solitary days spent in front of their screens and replacing them with days spent interacting, playing – being children. Sadly however, our Nowhere to Play research uncovered a decline so steep in playground provision across England that none of us can afford to ignore it. Between 2014/15 and 2015/16 local authorities across England closed 214 children’s playgrounds, and when asked about future plans they admitted their aim to close a further 234.Play is essential to children’s social, physical, mental and emotional development. Unstructured outdoor play, away from close adult supervision is vital if we are to raise a generation of fit and well-adjusted young people. To be a child is to play - the provision of play spaces is a necessity and not a luxury. In the midst of an obesity epidemic and mental health crisis amongst young people, we have a moral duty to push free, outdoor play to the top of the political agenda instead of replacing it with highly organised sports and hobbies.
