RoSPA Press Office : Press Release

June 11, 2007
CHILDREN MUST PLAY IN THE WILD, SAYS RoSPA

Children need wilder places to play where they can take risks, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents said today ahead of its International Play Safety Conference on Thursday (June 14).

Recent reports have suggested that some parents deny their children the chance to play outside by themselves, in part because of fears that they will get hurt.

RoSPA believes that children can learn valuable life-long lessons, particularly about risks and how to deal with them, from playing in the natural environment, and that parents have to accept that their children may get injured. Bumps, bruises and grazes are not serious injuries and are part of growing up.

Peter Cornall, Head of Leisure Safety at RoSPA, said: “We need to ask ourselves whether it is better for a child to break a wrist falling out of a tree, or to get a repetitive strain wrist injury at a young age from using a computer or video games console. Parents and children must not be frightened about venturing outside.

“When children spend time in the great outdoors, getting muddy, getting wet, getting stung by nettles, they learn important lessons - what hurts, what is slippery, what you can trip over or fall from.

“We need to try to break down the perceived safety barriers to playing outside. A step towards achieving this can be the creation of wild areas for natural play within parks. For example, there could be places to paddle on the banks of streams, climb trees and build dens. If these areas can be created within a supervised park environment in urban areas, parental fears should start to be allayed.”

RoSPA encourages parents to talk to their children about risks and how to cope with them, for example they might discuss why not all trees, such as those by roads or above concrete or railings, are good choices for climbing.

Peter Cornall said: “When children are able to interact with the world around them, they learn to push their boundaries and develop their own assessment skills – rarely, for example, will children climb above where they feel comfortable.”

RoSPA’s International Play Safety Conference will take place at Holywell Park, Loughborough University. As well as discussions around the promotion of natural play opportunities, it will include a workshop on the debate surrounding the provision of facilities for equipment such as mini motorbikes, skateboards, inline skates and wheeled trainers.

Further information about the conference can be found at www.rospa.com/play/. Places can be booked online, by emailing events@rospa.com or by calling 0121 248 2120.