News Clippings
Below are links to some important articles about play. Older news clippings have
been moved to an archive - please
click here.
2008
Parents producing 'battery-farmed' children who never play outside, says minister
Parents who refuse to let their children out to play are producing a 'battery-farmed'
generation, says a minister. Kevin Brennan warned that these youngsters would never become resilient and would be unable to cope with risk.
Read more:
Daily Mail February 2008
More play in primaries
Radical changes which would see fewer subjects taught in primary, particularly in the first year,
are welcomed by early years teachers and campaigners.
Read more:
Times Education Supplement January 2008
Children's Right to Play and Dream
The Director of Play England compliments the Government on addressing the issue of children's
quality of life positively through the Children's Plan which focuses on letting children be
themselves.
Read more:
eGov Monitor January 2008
2007
Pupils design their own playground
Pupils made their mark at Elstow Lower School by revamping their playground. Bedfordshire
County Council's community leadership fund handed over £1,250, which will go towards the
cost of the scheme. That sum was added to £2,400 that students raised last year from a
sponsored walk. And the pupils played a key role in designing the project, as the school
council created a questionnaire which youngsters completed to decide what should go in the
new playground and what it should look like.
Read more:
Dunstable Today December 2007
'Formal play' better prepares children for school
Children aged around four can be much better prepared for school by using 'formal
play' to teach them how to remember, pay attention and think, according to a study.
Read more:
The Telegraph November 2007
Health and safety 'extremists' damaging children's development
Health and safety 'extremists' have been warned that they are hindering the development of children
by wrapping them in cotton wool. The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents said it was 'positively necessary' for youngsters to take part in activities which could lead to a twisted
ankle or cut knee.
Read more:
Daily Mail November 2007
Part of Growing Up
Judith Hackitt, Chair of the Health and Safety Commission (HSC) has sent out a clear message
to those who hide behind so called health and safety rules to stop children from enjoying a
normal childhood. The new HSC Chair, speaking at a Royal Society for the Arts (RSA) 'Risk and Childhood' conference, said: 'Life is not risk free, we know that. Our children encounter
risks every day and learning to manage risks is an essential part of growing up. Through
educational activities and play we want children to enjoy themselves whilst staying safe. All
too often 'health and safety' is blamed for imposing unjustifiable bureaucracy on teachers.'
Read more:
SourceUK.net November 2007
Bullying is exaggerated, says childhood expert
The level of playground bullying is being exaggerated and children must learn to cope
with name-calling and teasing to help them develop resilience, a childhood expert says. In his
new book, Tim Gill, a former government adviser who led a major review into children's play,
argues that mollycoddling children by labelling 'unpleasant behaviour' as bullying is stopping
them from building the skills they need to protect themselves. 'I have spoken to teachers and
educational psychologists who say that parents and children are labelling as bullying what are
actually minor fallings-out,' said Tim, the former director of the then Children's Play Council,
who is currently advising the Conservative Party's childhood review. 'Children are not always
nice to each other, but people are not always nice to each other. The world is not like that.
One of the things in danger of being lost is children spending time with other children out of
sight of adults; growing a sense of consequence for their actions without someone leaping in' he
told The Observer.
Read more:
The Observer October 2007
|
