A new UK Government took
office on 11 May and is in the process of deciding its position on
a number of policies and government strategies . As a result the
content of this page may not reflect current Government
policy. All statutory guidance and legislation referred to
continues to reflect the current legal position unless indicated
otherwise.
Active play contributes to the health and
well-being of children. Health practitioners have an important role
in promoting energetic play to children and parents.
Evidence demonstrates that one of the best ways for children to
stay physically, emotionally and mentally healthy, is through
access to quality unstructured play opportunities.
However, a 2007 poll revealed that opportunities for playing
outside are in decline. 71 per cent of adults said that as children
they played outside in the street or an area close to their homes
every day, whereas only 21 per cent of children do so today.
Lack of physical activity has been identified as a major
cause for concern among health professionals.
Recent research by the British Heart Foundation found that in a
sample of 4,000 children, one in three were physically active for
only an hour per week – as opposed to the hour per day recommended
by the Chief Medical Officer.
Linked to this, we face a year-on-year rise in child obesity.
The Public Service Agreement for the Department of Health contains
a number of specific targets designed to halt the rise in obesity
in children under eleven.
The Healthy Child Programme produced by the Department of Health
provides guidance for all the services involved in promoting health
and well-being in children and young people. The guidance places
particular emphasis on the role of play in engaging children in
more physical activity.
The programme stresses the co-ordinating role of Children’s
Trusts in bringing together local authorities, Primary Care Trusts
and other organisations.
The Children’s Trust produces a Children and Young People’s Plan
which includes details of how health priorities, such as the
Healthy Child Programme, will be delivered at a local level.
Active play is also recommended by the National Centre for
Clinical Excellence (NICE) in its guidance on increasing physical
activity in children, and its guidance on improving local
environments to promote physical activity.
Good quality play experiences can also help improve children’s
mental health. In 1999 the Mental Health Foundation reported that
the increasingly limited opportunities for children to play
outside, or to attend supervised play projects, was a causative
factor in the rise in mental ill-health in young people.
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