Issue 26

Play news and briefing from the national organisation for play Autumn 2008

Play for Wales

Play in time and spacePlay in time and space

www.playwales.org.uk

Contents page

Editorial 2

News 3-5

Keeping Secrets – in defence ofchildren’s privacy 6

In defence of the fence 7

Against the fence 8

Play in hospitals 9

Ty^ Hafan celebrates Playday 9

Playday 2008 10

Rhodri Morgan on Playday 10

Hooray! Playwork: Principles intoPractice (P3) Level 2 is now anaccredited qualification... 11

Assessment is the word this summer – there’s a lot of it going on! 11

Take the Credit 11

Foundations of Playwork – a book review 12

Olympic Reward 12

Skills that work for Wales: A skills and employment strategy 13

Playworkers Forum 13

Events 14

Farewell to Ben 14

Date set for IPA Conference 2011 14

Lady Allen of Hurtwood Memorial Trust 2009 Awards 14

Editorial The summer might be a time for

rest, relaxation and reflection forsome, but not for the play sector – asalways play providers have beenhard at work making sure childrenand young people of Wales havegreat places to play. While childrenhave been on summer holiday,agencies and organisations havebeen working to make sure that time,space and freedom for all children toplay becomes a matter of entitlementset down in law.

Over the summer we have plannedresponses to two crucial consultationsregarding play and play opportunities:the Welsh Assembly Government’sTaking Action on Child Povertyconsultation and the Welsh AssemblyGovernment and BIG Lottery FundDormant Accounts Consultation.

The latter consultation on how moneyshould be spent is another opportunityto influence the spending of part of theestimated £10-12 million available inWales. Naturally we think it should bespent on providing or sustaining qualityplay opportunities. We urge readers torespond to this consultation making thecase for play – we have good evidencethat the number and strength ofresponses from the play sector canmake a real difference to how money isallocated.

We welcome the launch at the nationalEisteddfod of a new report from theChildren’s Commissioner’s Office – Ahappy talent: disabled children andyoung people’s access to play in Wales2007 – a review of local authoritystrategies and how they provide for playopportunities for disabled children. Theweather may not have been the bestfor playing outdoors but inside the tentduring the discussion and debate, thecommitment from a number ofpoliticians to bring about change andto question gaps in services was clearand heart-warming.

As noted in the findings of A happytalent, many local authority strategiesare still in draft form. We recognise thatmany are working hard to complete

their strategies and we hope that thisreview and the potential of a statutoryduty being placed on local authoritieswill help provide drive and direction.Also in order to make the most of thesecond round of BIG Lottery Child’s Playprogramme funding, play projectswishing to apply will need todemonstrate how their workcomplements play strategies locally.

Those of us who work on this magazinewere extremely pleased when earlier thisyear Play for Wales was mentioned inthe House of Lords by Lord “Battling”Barry Jones of Flintshire … it’s so good toknow that it is read and found useful, ifonly by one happy recipient! We hopeyou will find time to complete thereader evaluation enclosed (or on ourwebsite at www.playwales.org.uk) – ifonly to prove to us that there is morethan one reader out there ... butseriously we do have feedback tosuggest that Play for Wales is widelyread and we want to make sure it is asgood as possible.

And finally, ‘No Ball Games’ signs inNewport have been replaced with ‘Play More Here’ signs – congratulationsto all those who made this happen.Wouldn’t it be fantastic to see the samesigns in communities all over Wales?

Mike GreenawayDirector, Play Wales

Play for Wales is published by Play Wales four times a year.

Contact the Editor at:Play Wales, Baltic House, Mount Stuart Square, Cardiff CF10 5FH

Telephone: 029 2048 6050 E-mail: info@playwales.org.ukRegistered Charity No. 1068926

ISSN: 1755 9243

The views expressed in this newsletter are notnecessarily those of Play Wales. We reserve the right to edit for publication. We donot endorse any of the products or eventsadvertised in or with this publication.This publication is printed on paper producedfrom sustainable forests.

Designed and printed by CarrickTel: 01443 843 520 E-mail: sales@carrickdesignprint.co.uk

Play for Wales Issue 26 Autumn 2008EDITORIAL

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A heartfelt thank you to everyone who contributed to this magazine – wecouldn’t do it without you. This issue of Play for Wales, as well as previous issues, isavailable to download from our website news section at www.playwales.org.uk

IPA Conference 2011

The International Play Association2011 conference will be held in

Cardiff City Hall from Monday 4 Julyto Friday 8 July 2011 – so pencil it inyour diaries please everybody!

For more details see page 14

Play for Wales Issue 26 Autumn 2008NEWS

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Clybiau Plant Cymru Kids’ Clubs has been awardedthe tender from the Welsh Assembly Government to

write a quality assurance programme for out of schoolchildcare clubs and open access play provision. Thescheme will be tailored to the needs of children andyoung people in Wales and developed in line with thePlay Policy for Wales (2002).

The bilingual scheme will be developed in consultation withchildren, parents, play and childcare providers, local andcentral government, Care and Social Services InspectorateWales (CSSIW) and other key stakeholders. This will ensure that

it addresses the areas that are vital to recognising thesignificance and value of play in children’s lives. Wales QualityCentre, Play Wales and Creating Media (a design and mediaconsultant) will all contribute their views in developing thescheme.

During the Autumn, stakeholders will be invited to participate infocus groups. Work on developing the scheme is due to becompleted by February 2009.

For more information please contact Jane Burdett on 029 2074 1000 or janeb@clybiauplantcymru.org

Quality in PlayA Quality Assurance Scheme is being developed forchildcare and play providers in Wales. This long awaitedscheme will enable play providers in out of schoolchildcare and open access playschemes to demonstratethe quality of their provision, and raise the standards, sochildren and young people in Wales have the best possibleexperiences from attending.

The BIG Lottery Fund and theWelsh Assembly Government havelaunched a consultation on theexpenditure related to dormantaccounts funding in Wales. There is anestimated £10–£12 million funding availablefor Wales – which BIG will be distributing onbehalf of the Welsh Assembly Government.

This consultation is your opportunity to influence how andwhere it should be spent.

The consultation document outlines the broad prioritiesidentified by the Welsh Assembly Government for the fund,(mainly young people and climate change).

We have evidence that responding to consultations caninfluence decision-making at government level. We are callingon all those with an interest in children’s play to respond to thisconsultation, making the case for funding play provision inWales. The consultation is open to anyone to respond and ifmany of us contribute it represents a real and significantopportunity for us to increase funding.

Closing date for responses: 14 November 2008.

For further information and to respond to the consultationvisit: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/wales

Playday at theEisteddfodAs part of national Playday celebrationson 6 August we showed our short filmPushing Eddie in the Nettles with Connorat the national Eisteddfod in Cardiff.

This was followed by a chaired discussion onchildren’s access to challenge and adventure in

their play.

The discussion was chaired by Marc Phillips, Director ofBBC Children in Need, who was joined on the panel byLouisa Addiscott, a playwork trainer and assessor, andGareth Jones, fromthe Children’sCommissioner’sOffice. Helen MaryJones AM alsoattended andparticipated in thelively discussion.

Dormantaccounts

Play for Wales Issue 26 Autumn 2008NEWS

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New play guidance

Guide tomanaging risk inplay provision

The Play for a Change reportillustrates the substantial andwide-ranging evidence of theimportance of play in thelives of children.

Play for a Change is a review ofperspectives on play, policy and

practice carried out for Play Englandby Stuart Lester and Wendy Russell ofthe University of Gloucestershire. Thereview complements and updates thereview undertaken for the Children’sPlay Council in 2001.

A six page briefing can bedownloaded from the resourcessection of the Play Englandwebsite – www.playengland.org.uk.The full report and a sixty page‘summary’ will be published by theend of September 2008.

The Welsh Assembly Government is currently revising Technical Advice Note 16 (TAN 16), thatprovides technical guidance supplementing Planning Policy Wales (2002).

Consultants Bernard Spiegal, David Ball and Tim Gill areproducing a practical implementation guide to riskmanagement in play space provision. The Guide toManaging Risk in Play Provision has been agreed with thePlay Safety Forum (this group brings together UKorganisations interested in play safety, including Play Wales)and will be published in the next few months.

TAN 16 advises on the role of the planning system inmaking provision for sport and recreational facilities, and

open informal spaces, as well as protecting existingfacilities and open spaces to meet the diversity ofrecreational needs in urban and rural areas of Wales.

The revised TAN will be launched by Jane Davidson, Minister forEnvironment, Sustainability and Housing, this month.

Fields in Trust’s (FIT) newly published Planning and Design forOutdoor Sport and Play replaces and updates the Six AcreStandard.

Planning and Design for Outdoor Sport and Play continues touphold the original FIT recommendation that six acres ofrecreational space is required for every thousand people – abenchmark which has become the accepted industry-widestandard since its inception in the 1930s. It also provides adetailed framework of the issues relating to quantity, qualityand accessibility of outdoor facilities for sport and play and

the importance of local assessments and standards.

For more information visit: www.npfa.co.uk

Play England commissioned the Free Play Network to produceDesign for Play: A guide to creating successful play spaces.The Guide will help those involved in commissioning anddesigning places for play put play value at the heart ofprovision.

The Guide shows how to design good play spaces, that canbe affordably maintained, and that give children and youngpeople the freedom to play creatively, yet still experience risk,challenge and excitement. The Guide sets out a newapproach, tackles some current myths, and aims to challengeproviders to think more laterally and creatively about childrenand young people in the public domain.

The guide is available free of charge. Please order anddownload from the Play England website:www.playengland.org.uk

The guide will encourage anapproach to play provision that

does not automatically seek the‘safe’ route but enables playproviders to develop and managechallenging and stimulating playprovision. Therefore children will beable to experience risk and dangerwithin an informed professionalframework that does not conflictwith providers’ legal and ethicalduty of care.

This resource will be a ‘how-to’ guideto risk management in play spaceprovision and will include a discussionof the philosophical implications ofattempting to challenge risk-averseprovision.

The guide will complement the PlaySafety Forum’s position statement forall those involved in play provision –Managing Risk in Play Provision whichcan be downloaded atwww.playengland.org.uk

Play for aChangeResearch

Play for Wales Issue 26 Autumn 2008NEWS

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Children’s Commissioner’s report

Childminding and daycare for children aged undereight are regulated in Wales under the Children Act

1989. Registration and inspection of these settings iscarried out by the Care and Social Services InspectorateWales (CSSIW). In carrying out these functions, CSSIW musthave regard to National Minimum Standards (NMS). Thereare six sets of such standards, relating respectively tochildminding, full daycare, crèches, sessional care, out ofschool childcare, and open access play.

As the framework for regulation has been broadly unchangedsince April 2002, the Welsh Assembly Government is in theprocess of letting a contract to carry out a review of the

legislation surrounding the regulation of childminding anddaycare regulation in Wales, including National MinimumStandards (NMS).

The intention is to facilitate discussion amongst relevantparties, as to the continued effectiveness of the existinglegislation. The successful contractor will prepare a paperoutlining the results and proposals on possible changes to theregulatory framework and National Minimum Standards, arisingfrom the stakeholder consultation. This paper could includerecommendations, ranging from initial intentions for the use ofan Assembly Measure to alter primary legislation, to detailedand more rapid changes including amendment to existingregulations and NMS.

At the National Eisteddfod in Cardiff the Children’s Commissioner’s Officelaunched a new report on disabled children, young people and play. Thereport: A happy talent: disabled children and young people’s access toplay in Wales 2007 is a review of local authority play strategies.

The report is based on twentylocal authorities play

strategies, many of which werestill in draft form. The findings of the report include:‘Some strategies make statements that all future playprovision should be planned to include the needs ofdisabled children from the outset, with no reference toplans for improving existing provision. It would appearthat making play inclusive of all children is anafterthought rather than being integral to all policy andstrategy development… Some of the strategies identifydisability as a barrier to accessing play; but,unfortunately, they do not set out clearly how this barrierwill be overcome.’

At the launch there was a panel discussion which includedHelen Mary Jones AM, who chairs the Children and YoungPeople’s Committee, who said:

‘The Children’s and Young People’s Committee arecommitted to ensuring that play opportunities improve for allchildren and young people. We know there are examples ofgood practice in some parts of Wales, but we are keen toensure that the gaps between national policy and whathappens at grass roots level are addressed. I am keen tomake sure that local partnerships become moreaccountable for how they plan and develop play services forall children.’

The report, and a child friendly version of the report, can bedownloaded from the Children’s Commissioner’s website:www.childcomwales.org.uk

Integrated Children’s Centresevaluation researchT he National Foundation for Educational Research

(NFER) has been commissioned by the BIGLottery Fund (BIG) to evaluate the work of IntegratedChildren’s Centres (ICCs) in Wales.

As part of the strategy to ensure access to qualitychildcare for working parents or for parents wishing toundertake education or training, all local authorities inWales are required to develop at least one ICC to offer

services for children and their families. BIG has providedfunding for capital projects in all existing ICCs.

This research will extend over eighteen months, andevaluate the extent to which the Centres’ aims are beingachieved, the nature of their activities and their impact,whether and to what extent ICCs are promoting multi-agency working, and the effectiveness of managementstructures at strategic and operational levels.

Review of Childminding and Daycare Regulations

Play for Wales Issue 26 Autumn 2008KEEPING SECRETS – IN DEFENCE OF CHILDREN’S PRIVACY

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Keeping secrets– in defence of children’s privacyAbright green path runs the length of a

playground’s back wall, draped all over with low-hanging ivy. Dense as the jungle, the path veersaround a tree, under another arch, and then burstsout suddenly into a broad clearing. Tall trees standon three sides and the ground underfoot is stampeddown to bare dirt. Bits of cloth swing from thebranches above, moving slightly in the damp autumnbreeze. In the clearing is a table that was draggedfrom the main building, with two chairs tuckedconversationally alongside. One is turned over, as ifa small party was abruptly disbanded.

I returned to this spot at the adventure playground regularlyafter my first sighting, making careful charts of changes thereat the close of every day. I was cataloging evidence of aculture enacted out of sight of adults and out of their control.

Private places offer so much that weconsider essential to play, and tochildhood. In a world of stridentmarketing tactics, high pressureacademic regimes, endless testingboth scholastic and social, as well as‘helicopter parenting’ and CCTV,genuine privacy is under threat – andmore necessary than ever. A place tobe voluntarily alone allows theindividual child to learn and practicetechniques of solitude andindependence, to explore the potentialof solitude for relaxation,contemplation, refuge andexperimentation.

Carl Jung spoke of the private place asa ‘fortress’ for the emerging individual,as a testing ground for techniques ofselfhood. More recently the notion ofprivacy and secrecy has been arguedas ‘closely related to the achievementof self-identity and self-esteem’ (R.Bechtel et al, The Handbook ofEnvironmental Psychology, 2002) andassociated with ‘independence,personal power and positiveautonomy’ (Manen, Max van andLevering, Bas. Childhood’s Secrets:Intimacy, Privacy and the SelfReconsidered, New York Teachers College Press, 1996). Timespent with the self in a place of shelter and safety is central tothe individual’s creation of boundaries, and the concurrentsense of one’s own value that is necessary to maintain themwith others.

A study of dens or camps made on the fringes of play spacedemonstrates how the best hiding places are opportunistic,

offering play value in the seeking out and creation of placesof privacy. In sneaking to places ‘beneath and behind’ fixedequipment of their worlds, children are practicing skills ofsubterfuge and secret-keeping as they find, inherit and createnew worlds. Children’s private places of community offer theopportunity to build and enact culture, to share informationand participate in secret-sharing, illicit consumption,experimentation with language and social strategies. This isthe development of a world within playspaces, but also apartfrom it. Offering children the chance to learn and negotiateall this for themselves, privacy is also one of the most difficultplay needs to provide, and to advocate.

The playground itself is a physical and social framing of space,and forms the context for the play within it. Dens and forts areusually tucked away in sub-locations bounded and screenedoff by trees, hedges and fixed play equipment. Ideally theyoffer both refuge and vantage point, being able to see

without being seen. Loose parts such asfurniture and fabric are often included.How do we create a system of placethat provides for, even encourages itsown creative subversion? Ourobservation of hidden areas, the‘cleaning up’ loose parts from the site atthe end of the day; these have directimplications for children’s rights toprivacy on site.

Adult fears relating to sex and violencesay more about our own anxieties thanchildren’s behaviours. This is for us tocome to terms with, because withoutopportunities to learn and practicetechniques of being alone and beingalone with others, how are children tobecome adept social agents? How arethey to learn and maintain theboundaries of their growing selves? Howto trust, how to be trustworthy, how to bebrave in untested company, how tomake and keep friends – this is alllearned between children when we arenot around. The most frighteningsituations will generally happen whenadults are not watching, so how muchbetter it is to provide ‘spots’ of privacy,opportunistic openings forexperimentation with privacy, within astructure of sympathetic and responsible

adults. This, and our long-standing commitment to children’srights and needs, is why adults in play are ideally located toadvocate also for children’s rights to privacy.

This article was written by Morgan Leichter-Saxby, a USplayworker, researcher and consultant working in the UK.She works with a variety of groups to promote free andinclusive play.

7Play for Wales Issue 26 Autumn 2008FENCES AND BUNTING

In defence of the fencePenny Wilson describes and emphasisesthe importance of boundaries to preserve children’s play opportunities in an urban area.

Wherever you go in the borough where I work, you seethe legacy left by the blitz. In Shadwell every building

is grey and blocky. Every space available for play has asign: ‘No Ball Games’. The homes are not designed withchildren in mind. Children are surrounded by lines ofdivision which make moving around the borough as difficultas flick-flacking your way through a mesh of laser burglaralarms. Every space excludes children and what isimportant to them – playing.

The only spaces where play is permitted are nasty littleprimary-coloured play areas with tangles of metal inside. Inmost cases, two rows of railings separate the age groups –older children in one area, younger children in another. Tome, this is a way for play equipment manufacturers to sellmore equipment – and a way to make sure we are keepingtight control on the children. They are clearly not safe to playtogether or as part of the community!

So I walk along Cable Street. It feels like walking along agulley with slabs of rockface on either side, and the constantnagging of the No Ball Games signs. They niggle away atthe subconscious culture of the growing and growncommunity: ‘Playing is wrong – disapprove of play,’ “dis” playwhenever you come across it, ‘Play is not cool oracceptable.’

Then I see it. Another fence, another sign of a land grab, buthere there are giant cut-outs of giant children drawn andpainted by themselves. There are welcome signs that reallymean it – they say, ‘You may play here!’ Written large for allto see – these signs celebrate children, rather than oppressor exclude them. And inside this wonderful fence, whattreasures for children are hidden in the larger than life sizedwalk-in button box ...?

... a splash of colour, a riot of noise. The skeleton of a weirdfunfair or circus, decorated with old road signs and trafficcones, daubed with clumsy paint in tender, witty, quirkytouches. This play space signifies a zest for life – not an inaneprimary coloured ‘Kodak moment’.

‘Roll up children welcome to Glamis Adventure Playground,the environment that compensates for Shadwell!’

In Shadwell children live in high-rise blocks but are unable toget any feeling of height; they will never have climbed atree. Here they can scramble up the structures and test theirnerves on the ‘raiders of the lost arc’ (sic) bridge as they lookdown on the roofs of the houses around them. They can feeltheir own deaths in the pits of their stomachs as they trembleon the edge of anticipation, swinging, knotted seat in hand,before they plummet to earth … almost.

They can make fires in the tip. They eat the grapes they growand have a plot of land to garden if they want. They can

take a real risk and dress up in a shimmering ball gown anda red fright wig, make small worlds from tiny toys ... perhapstrying to create a world they understand and desire. Theteenage boys drag the crash-mats to a stage and flumpdown on them – giggling and telling soft stories. The girlsenjoy their scarves fluttering behind them as they fly, really fly,through the sky, weightless, on the swing.

Could this happen if the fence was not here to mark out thespace? If the fence did not echo the message of the zaneytowers – the minarets that call the children to play, shoutingout the message that children are welcomed here and theirplaying is the most important work to be done? Would thisspace have been used for yet another new housingdevelopment? Probably – every other tiny scrap of land isbristling with construction.

New building developments are required by law toaccommodate play space for children. Yet we know that thenotion of playable space has been so abused by designersand architects that the spaces by wheelie bins and betweenparked cars are designated children’s space. Talk aboutspaces of exclusion!

At Glamis Adventure playground the fence holds theenvironment. It is like a womb, a space for creation, a spacethat is different from any other. One of the Glamis children (8)said ‘out there on the streets I have to be so cool and hard.But in here I can just relax and be myself and play.’

I support this fence as bunting, as celebration – as a triumphof sanity over commerce.

The full version of this article can be downloaded fromour website.

Nine year old Maria recounts thenegative impact fencing play areas has on play opportunities.

My family and me live in Wales and we went to Londonfor the weekend in May. When my dad and two

brothers went to watch our friend play football, my sisterCaitlin and me asked to go to the park. Regent’s Park wasnearby. I thought it was big and posh and royal with lots ofpretty flowers.

We liked it there. We explored the bushes and flowers, playedleap frog, grabbed blossom and chased the pigeons. Thenwe found an exciting play area. It looked good because ithad sand and bark and loads and Ioads of big play areas.The only problem was the gate was locked. My mummanaged to convince us that maybe there was some workgoing on, and it was such a big park, maybe we could findanother play area.

Caitlin and me played leap frog towards London Zoo. We didfind another, even better park, but again it was locked. Mumlooked at the opening hours. It was meant to close at 7.30pm,but it was still only 6.30pm. There was no sign of work or repairsin this one either.

I was disappointed, but surprised that I felt like I wanted toclimb the fence to go and play. I started climbing andstopped and turned around to ask, ‘Mum you will back me upif I get caught, won’t you?’

‘Yeah, go ahead if you want,’ Mum said, looking around (I thinkto make sure no one was watching us).

I don’t think she was worried because the sign said it should beopen. Maybe the caretaker or whoever was looking after it wason a break. But Caitlin didn’t want to join me because shethought she would get caught.

After a quick run around, a swing and a few slides, I started tofeel a bit worried because some people were riding past ontheir bikes looking at me like they were going to tell someone– so I climbed back out.

We left the park to start to walk back to the hostel.‘Is Play Wales gonna sort this?,’ I asked Mum. ‘This is England,’ Mum answered.‘Well I hope your gonna tell Play England!’ my sister said.

Mum said maybe we would write a letter. In the end it waspretty cool because I got to have the whole park to myselfand I felt a bit like the queen’s daughter in her garden.

I’m not sure why there is a fence there. It’s like they are tryingto stop something. It’s not like anything is going to happen–because it was in the middle of the park way away from theroad. I don’t know why there is an opening time on the playarea anyway. It’s not like a café or restaurant. The play areashould close when the whole park closes. They shouldn’t evenhave a play area there if they are going to lock it.

Play for Wales Issue 26 Autumn 2008FENCES AND BUNTING

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Against the fence

Fences and playgrounds in JapanOur friend, Chris Snell, visited Japanearlier this year, he tells us aboutplayground boundaries in Japan.

The first thing that strikes you entering a Japaneseadventure playground is the lack of a big fence. Most

playgrounds are open to the public and many have publicpaths crossing them. This immediately gives them a feelingof being within the community and not, as is often thecase in the UK, a children’s enclave apart from it.

Coupled with the welcoming attitude of the playworkers toadults visiting the site, the playgrounds have many moreparents and other adults on the site than most UKplaygrounds. In contrast to a suspicious ‘stranger danger’attitude to adults, the Japanese play movement placesimportance on engaging adults as a way of embeddingchildren and play into the community. Indeed playworkerssee working with adults as a major part of their role anddevote as much time to enabling other adults to facilitateplay as they do to working directly with children.

Play for Wales Issue 26 Autumn 2008FREEDOM, TIME AND SPACE TO PLAY

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Play in hospitals

Ty^ Hafan celebrates Playday

Sue Simpson, a Hospital Play Specialistat University Hospital Wales, explains how play opportunities are facilitated in hospitals.

Play in hospital is as important to children as play isanywhere else.

The Hospital Play Specialist (HPS) aims to provide as many playopportunities as possible bearing in mind the constraintsimposed by hospitalisation. Most hospitals have playrooms oneach ward, many of which are accessible to the childrenthroughout the day and evening, children who are mobilecan then go to the playroom and choose what they want toplay with.

As HPS’ we realise that play can take place anywhere andmedical issues and equipment should not be a reason not toplay. The HPS has to be adaptable in providing play in hospitalespecially in restricted settings, for example the x-raydepartment, traction beds and intensive care units. It isimportant for us to look past the medical condition andequipment and see the child – often a very scared andfrightened child – and use play to alleviate the stress causedfor the child, family and staff by a hospital admission.

When a child is restricted to their bed for medical reasons,their bed space then becomes their play space. The HPS mustthen take play opportunities to the child. The bed might be

transformed into a tent, spaceship, painting space, in factanything that will encourage the child to play and if only for ashort time feel themselves removed from a clinicalenvironment.

Play in hospital can have many interruptions thus restricting thechild’s time to play – physio time, ward rounds medicationtimes, and procedures. The HPS will endeavour to encourageplay whilst incorporating these times. If a patient needs to goto a different part of the hospital for tests and so forth, the HPSwill try to make sure the child can take something with them toplay with, in case there is a delay. Toys, books and smallequipment can be taken to theatre and many children playwhilst waiting to have an anaesthetic.

Time to play can give child patients a sense of freedom, andaccess to free play time is vitally important as patients havevery little control over what happens to them in hospital. TheHPS encourages children and other members of staff to playwhenever the opportunity arises.

Despite the restrictions imposed on time, space and freedomin a hospital environment, the role of the HPS is to ensure thatplay continues during an admission and its value is recognisedas a therapeutic tool.

Play can reduce the fear and anxiety felt when a child isadmitted to hospital, but perhaps the most important thing isthat play in hospital can be fun.

Find out more in the Play Places sections atwww.playwales.org.uk

Ty^ Hafan, the children’s hospice in South Wales, hasalways provided play and leisure opportunities so the

children who stay there can experience fun andenjoyment. To celebrate Playday they held a week ofspecial activities, which involved the children, siblingsand the care staff.

The hospice, which provides respite and palliative, terminalcare for children with life-limiting diseases and their families,celebrated this year’s Playday theme of risky play by providingthe children with the opportunity to handle reptiles, learn circusskills and stage their own mini Olympics. They also had thechance to chisel wood with a local scout group, and a multi-sensory room was set up with fibre optics, bubble tubes andlots of different textured objects and food for the children toplay with. The snow machine was a firm favourite with the children (like Samuel, pictured) as it gave them anopportunity to experience some of the sensations that we take for granted.

Ty Hafan is one of the first children’s hospices in the UK to establish its own toy and leisure library. It was opened a year ago and includes specialist equipment to stimulateand encourage children to express themselves through play.

For more information please contact Helen Gillingham, theOutreach Play Practitioner on 029 2053 2200 or hgillingham@tyhafan.org

Play for Wales Issue 26 Autumn 2008FREEDOM, TIME AND SPACE TO PLAY

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Playday took place on Wednesday 6 August thisyear. Thousands of children and young people

across Wales took part in the celebrations andwent out and played at locally organised events.

This year’s Playday theme was centred on risky play and howchildren need and want challenge, excitement anduncertainty in play. Some playschemes incorporated this intotheir activities, in Tredegar Park for example; children wereclimbing trees, playing in the sand, planting seeds and usingtools to saw wood. At a majority of events, children were alsogiven the opportunity to play with water, and to do scrap andjunk modelling, digging in the mud, den building and doingsome sensory activities too.

Overall the day was a greatsuccess, with many tired,but happy children by four o clock in theafternoon. Festivities continued into the evening at the OvalBasin in Cardiff Bay where children were provided withclimbing frames, skateboard ramps, drumming, percussion and costume workshops and wall graffiti by Cardiff Council Children’s Play services.

Research released for Playday 2008 which shows children arefacing serious restrictions to their opportunities for adventurousplay can be accessed atwww.playday.org.uk/playday_campaigns/2008_give_us_a_go/2008_research.aspx

Rhodri Morgan on PlaydayOn Playday, thirteen year old Joeinterviewed First Minister Rhodri Morganin Llanishen Park, Cardiff.

Joe: This year’s Playday theme is ‘don’t wrap us inbubble wrap’. What do you think of the theme?

Rhodri: I think it’s a fair point. There’s a tremendousdifference now in how careful parents are about kids, there’sno chance of just disappearing out of the house in themorning, after breakfast, and coming back in the evening,as we used to do when we were children.

Joe: Did you know more children my age were treated for repetitive strain injury than broken arms in the past year?

Rhodri: That’s weird isn’t it. There’s play equipment aroundnow that would have been inconceivable when I was yourage, about fifty five to sixty years ago. Personal computers,joysticks, playstations and all that was just unimaginable tous. So, obviously we used to be out and about exploring andclimbing trees and yes, occassionally having accidents. On the other hand, we learnt a lot more about how toappreciate risk. Because we were out so much adventurousplay was not something you had to organise, it would just beautomatic.

Joe: When I was in primary school the teachers anddinner ladies didn’t let us do lots of stuff at playtime.They always said it was too dangerous and ‘health andsafety’ said we couldn’t do it. What can the government do to change this and make play moreenjoyable and fun?

Rhodri: Even in my day I can remember there used to be agame we played in the playground which was then bannedon the grounds because it was too dangerous, and I’mtalking before the 1950s. That’s a long time ago. This is agame called ‘strong horses, weak donkeys’ in which the kidsused to line up in a group with the younger kids at the frontand us all running along in a line then we used to leap withthe smaller kids at the front to see if you could collapse thewhole thing. That was risky so that was banned.

Even in those days there was a health and safety issue aboutplay and some games got banned because they weredangerous for kids’ backs. But in general people didn’t worryso much about health and safety and as a result you learntto appreciate risk in your own way and therefore it was youthe child making the decision not the adults making thedecisions for you.

Above: Rhodri and Joe under the umbrella

Playday 2008

Play for Wales Issue 26 Autumn 2008WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

11

HOORAY! Playwork: Principles intoPractice (P3) Level 2 is now an accredited qualification

Assessment is the word this summer– there’s a lot of it going on!Learners who completed Playwork:Principles into Practice (P3) last year arebeing assessed. Learners completing P3

this year are being assessed.

And there’s a team of would-be P3 assessors also being assessed whilst assessing P3 learners. So someone near

you is probably undergoing assessment!

Now P3 has become a qualification, those wishing to gain ithave to not just participate in the course, but also complete

a number of reflective accounts, answer questions and beobserved by one of our growing assessor team. It’s not toohard or too scary, but it does have to be done properly – wehave verifiers checking this is the case.

Apart from the fact that it is a qualification requirement,assessment is really necessary for playwork. We takeassessment very seriously because we need to know that P3

training works. We want to see qualified playworkers who canprove they have grasped the basics of the PlayworkPrinciples, so that ultimately we can ensure that thoseworking with children out of school will uphold children’s rightto play in the ways they want and need.

Take the credit2 December 2008 – Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff

Take the Credit: the first national playwork skillsconference in Wales is a conference organised by

Playwork Wales working in partnership with SkillsActive.

The Deputy Minister for Skills John Griffiths will be officiallylaunching Playwork Wales – the National Centre forPlaywork Education and Training. The findings of the Whereare you? Ble wyt ti? playwork research survey will be

presented and there will be a variety of workshops tochoose from.

This exciting conference is for playwork developmentofficers, executive officers, training providers, furthereducation and higher education staff, playwork andchildcare employers, careers information services, playworkmanagers and workforce development officers.

For further information or to book your place please visit the events section of our website or contact Kate on 029 2048 6050 or mail@playwales.org.uk

This means that by October over 400 learnersin Wales will have completed the course andbecome qualified Level 2 playworkers.

The training is available in Welsh or English. If you want to knowmore about P3 training please visit the training section of our website

or contact Mel Welch on 029 2048 6050 or mel@playwales.org.uk

Play for Wales Issue 26 Autumn 2008WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

12

Foundations of Playwork– a book reviewPlayworkers today work across very variedenvironments and must navigate acomplicated path that involves balancingtheory with practice and personalreflection with public advocacy.

The sheer variety and scope of what playworkers do hasseldom been adequately represented in one place but

this new publication Foundations of Playwork edited byBrown and Taylor aims to help change all that.

Fraser Brown is Reader in Playwork at Leeds MetropolitanUniversity and is perhaps best known as an author including hisrecent publication The Venture: A case study of an adventureplayground published by Play Wales, and for his work withabandoned children in Romania. Chris Taylor is a lecturer,trainer and consultant and significantly for this book, the authorof the learning outcomes for the Foundation Degree.

As its title suggests Foundations of Playwork is framed by thecurriculum of the Playwork Sector Endorsed FoundationDegree. Its 56 short chapters from 49 different contributors areloosely organised to cover everything from the child at playand the playwork approach to the wider context includinglegislation, management and research.

Individual chapters use a range of methods including casestudies, reflections and critiques and consider playwork inenvironments from parks to prisons. One refreshing aspect ofFoundations of Playwork is that it considers playwork in all fourhome nations as well as offering insights into playwork inRomania and the US.

The contributors, like the materials, represent a diverse rangeof interests and positions and include many of the leadingtheorists, practitioners, trainers, advocates and policy makers inthe field.

The highlight of the book is surely the central chapter by BrianSutton Smith, arguably the world’s leading play theorist.Drawing together various threads, including his seminal workThe Ambiguity of Play, it offers an exciting glimpse into thefuture of playwork theory.

Other notablecontributors include PerryElse, Wendy Russell,Stuart Lester, Tim Gill,Mick Conway, AnnieDavy, Adrian Voce andFraser Brown.

There are too manyexcellent chapters toname individually but forthis reader some of themost thought provokingincluded Brown’s owncritique of the PlayworkPrinciples; Penny Wilsonon inclusion; Maureen Palmer on health and safety; Mike Wragg on guerilla playwork; and Adrian Voce onpromoting effective play strategies. Although tantalisinglyshort, each, like a good film trailer, is guaranteed to make yousit up, pay attention and start thinking.

Given the nature of such a wide-ranging book it is inevitablethat several times you are left wanting more – chapters rarelyexceed four pages so a particularly useful addition is theannotated bibliography of selected playwork texts by Anna Kassman-McKerrell. This is certain to be invaluable foranyone looking to broaden and further his or her studies.

It is to the editors’ credit that Foundations of Playworksucceeds in appealing to a wide audience thanks to itsaccessible style and sheer variety of contributions. This varietyis well suited to playwork where, as the authors note, a holisticview of the child is important.

Although generally neutral in tone many contributors speakwith impressive honesty and conviction about their thoughts,feelings and experiences. Chapters are clearly structured andcomprehensively referenced.

Foundations of Playwork provides a wide-ranging and up todate overview of the playwork sector that convincingly reflectscurrent playwork practice. It succeeds in bringing togethermany different strands of play and playwork in one volumeand will surely be a significant contribution to the literature formany years to come.

Following the Olympics in Beijing gold medal winning cyclist NicoleCooke returned home to the Vale of Glamorgan to a fantastic

welcome. The local play rangers (along with their self build waterslide) were part of the celebrations.

As seen in the photo Nicole was presented with a special medal madeof self hardening clay, pasta and peas. We’re sure she will treasure herlatest medal!

Olympic Reward

Scott Rowley, Play Development Officer inFlintshire, shares his experiences of thePlayworkers Forum in mid-Wales.

With the development of our first adventure playground inFlintshire, the playworker ‘get together’ seemed the

perfect opportunity to gain further knowledge. The locationset the tone for the next couple of days – middle of nowhere,back to basics with the luxury of toilet and shower facilities(which was more than what we originally anticipated!)

The first workshop that I attended was Assessing Quality, whichlooked at our own childhood experience in play environments,then compared it with what we currently offer to children in thesame area. Not only did this make me question certainelements that could be lacking in our current provision, butalso look at ways in which we could enhance it in order toafford the most varied play experience possible.

After a good lunch, I attended the Playing with the Elementsworkshop, which gave delegates the opportunity to get stuckin and to gain new skills. By the end of this session, rafts weremade and raced down the river, an ‘A frame’ and zip wirewere built and a fire started.

The laid back nature of this residential gave delegates theopportunity to exchange ideas and experiences and was

enhanced by the ‘hands on’ approach to the workshops.Bands, barbeque and a bonfire – need anymore be said!

On the second day I chose the Structure Building workshop,which gave delegates a free rein to plan and build astructure. As my post is heavily office based, this gave meexcellent hands-on experience and especially with ouradventure playground being in it’s early stages, it gave me aninsight into the different types of tools and approaches thatcan be used.

This forum is a must for anyone involved in adventure play.Through the practical emphasis of the event, it enables you tocritically assess your current play provision, gain new skills thatyou wouldn’t normally, as well as sharing good practice withother playworkers across Wales.

Play for Wales Issue 26 Autumn 2008WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

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Skills that work for Wales:A skills and employment strategy

Playworkers Forum

The Deputy Minister for Skills recentlyunveiled a new strategy which outlines howWales will increase skill levels in the future.‘Skills That Work for Wales’ is the proposednew five-year strategy and action plan,which will replace the current Skills andEmployment Action Plan.

The strategy and action plan include new approaches tofunding, a more demand-responsive skills and business

support service, integrated skills and employment servicesdelivered through partnership between the AssemblyGovernment and Department of Work and Pensions and thetransformation of the learning network.

Within the Strategy, key announcements include the creationof the Wales Employment and Skills Board to provide robust,

credible advice to Welsh Ministers on all issues related to skills,employment and business support.

The Welsh Assembly Government states that the long term skillschallenge will only be met if young people are offered betteropportunities than previous generations to ensure that childrenget a good start in life. As a result, the Assembly Governmentwill ensure the best possible start for young people through theintroduction of the Foundation Phase. They will also revise theschool curriculum and the skills framework for 3-19 year olds;offer a range of applied learning routes for 14-19 year oldswithin the Welsh Baccalaureate; create options that match thelearning styles and interests of students and ensure thatstudents make informed choices around vocational learning.

In an attempt to address the skills and productivity agendaacross Wales the Assembly Government will expand theworkforce development programme and discretionaryfunding, especially for leadership and managementdevelopment, and will introduce a new Sector Priorities Fund toensure that funding for skills meets the needs of key sectors.

Richard Tobutt, SkillsActive Programme Manager for Wales

Play for Wales Issue 26 Autumn 2008EVENTS AND FUNDING

14

Events

Ben Tawil, one of ourNorth Wales Play

Development Officers, hasmoved on. Fortunately hehasn’t strayed too far as hehas taken the post ofProgramme Leader on thePlay and Playwork degreeat Glyndw^ r University.

For the past two and a halfyears Ben has beeninstrumental in severalprojects for Play Walesincluding the AdventurePlayground Forum – only Bencould muster up enoughcharm to get level-headedpeople to ‘crash’ in a field inthe freezing cold (and enjoyit AND go back for more!). He has provided invaluablesupport to playwork in North Wales and has been a vitalcontributor to Play Wales’ Playwork: Principles into Practice(P3) training. The list goes on!

It goes without saying that we’ll all miss him enormouslyand wish him all the best in his new job.

Date set forIPA Conference 2011Earlier this year we announced that we will be

hosting the 2011 International Play Association(IPA) world conference on it’s 50th anniversary. Afterspending weeks looking for the perfect venue thatcan accommodate such a large-scale event we havefinally chosen Cardiff City Hall and we will haveexclusive use of the building for the whole week.

The conference will be held Monday 4 – Friday 8 July 2011. At the moment we are still in the early stages of planning, butwe already have a bank of ideas that will hopefully make thisone of the most memorable conferences that the IPA hasever held.

If you are interested in the conference please contact Gill Evans on 029 2048 6050 or info@playwales.org.uk.

*For those who are avid social networkers, we have recentlyset up a group on facebook with regular news updates andinformal discussions about the conference.

If you would like to join, please visitwww.facebook.com/group.php?gid=25996491058.

Applications are invited for the 2009 Lady Allen Awards made to candidates

working with children, to travel and broadentheir professional experience and apply it totheir work. The grants given annually arenormally up to £1000.

Closing date for applications: 15 January 2009

For further information, forms and guidelines please visit www.ladyallentrust.org, or write to Caroline Richards, 89, Thurleigh Road, London SW12 8TY.

Lady Allen of HurtwoodMemorial Trust2009 Awards

23 October 2008Quality Assurance Scheme for Out ofSchool childcare and Open AccessPlay in Wales: All Wales Focus GroupThe Metropole Hotel, Llandrindod Wells

www.clybiauplantcymru.org

Standards and Guidance on Actionswithin the Play Policy ImplementationPlan7 October, Llandrindod Wells8 October, Abergele14 October, Cardiff15 October, CarmarthenPlay2@yorkconsulting.co.uk

2 December 2008 Take the Credit – Playwork Wales and SkillsActiveWales Millennium Centre, Cardiff www.playwales.org.uk

Farewell to Ben

Does my bumlook big in this?