Original press release: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/17/levelling-up-housing-and-communities-committee/news/198472/children-young-people-and-the-built-environment-levelling-up-committee-launches-inquiry/

Inquiry

This inquiry is looking at how better planning and building and urban design in England could enhance the health and well-being of children and young people, while also benefitting the population as a whole. It will look at how children and young people can use outside public spaces and move around their neighbourhoods: how they can be active and visibly part of their communities – whether it is their street, housing development, estate, town centre, village, public square or park. And it will look at what role the Government may have in making the built environment work in the best way possible.

Written evidence submitted by colleagues at Loughborough University – https://committees.parliament.uk/writtenevidence/127305/html/

Submission Paper Summary:

This submission paper addresses questions around the experiences of children and young people of their built environment in relation to evidence of play in outdoor spaces.

How do children and young people experience outdoor spaces in towns, cities and rural areas across the country?

Significance of outdoor freeplay environments for children and young people:

• Evidence suggests there has been a decline in children’s independent mobility and use of outdoor space in the context of reduced access to safe and inviting green spaces in local communities, alongside fears about traffic and stranger danger.
• Evidence highlights that children enjoy, and benefit from, a mix of indoor and outdoor play, where these opportunities enhance physical and mental wellbeing.

How do these experiences vary across income, race, gender, age? 

Variation in experiences across income levels and age:

• Evidence shows that income and social class can be a determining factor in children’s access to play spaces and opportunities within their local communities. Notably, working-class children spend considerable time playing out yet want greater access to extra-curricular activities which are beyond their families’ financial reach. Middle class families are more likely to have access to opportunities for play in greenspace environments, through access to opportunities like Forest School, from an earlier, preschool age. Working and middle-class children experience very different childhoods. This shapes young people’s futures through unequal opportunities to develop embodied social and cultural capital in different play environments.
• Evidence shows that early years (0 to 5 years of age) is a neglected area of cross government working and planning in comparison to other stages of the children and young people life course (i.e. 5 years and above).

Recommendations:

Recommendation 1: Recognise children and young people’s right to access recreational activities in woodland spaces, as well as institutionalised public spaces such as community halls, leisure centres and sports fields. An expanded vision of what counts as ‘playful spaces’ is vital.

Recommendation 2: Recognise the importance of access to greenspaces for children and young people through their education institutions and within their local communities, ensuring greenspace development is embedded within school infrastructure and local urban community planning.

Recommendation 3:  Recognise the value of outdoor learning opportunities, and access to outdoor spaces for learning, through educational policy and curriculum development at all stages of development. An expanded vision of what counts at each stage of development for children and young people is important.

Recommendation 4: Recognise that unequal access to local spaces for play, recreation and community engagement can have lasting impacts for children and young people’s social and cultural development.

Submission from:

Dr Janine Coates – Senior Lecturer in Qualitative Research at Loughborough University. Research expertise relate to issues of inclusion and equity in childhood, with a specific focus on childhood disability, outdoor learning, physical activity and sport.[1]

Dr Helena Pimlott-Wilson – Reader in Human Geography at Loughborough University. Research expertise focuses on the shifting importance of education and employment in the reproduction of classed inequalities, with an emphasis on alternative and supplementary education.[2]

Supported and reviewed by Mr Paddy Smith, Senior Public Affairs Manager, Policy Unit, Loughborough University[3] and Dr Verity Postlethwaite, Vice-Chancellor Independent Research Fellow, Loughborough University.[4]

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