International Day of Play: Celebrating the power of play despite politicians showing they don't give a damn

Supported by over 140 sponsoring nations, the Day of Play is a significant milestone in efforts to preserve, promote, and prioritise play so that all people - especially children - can reap the rewards and thrive to their full potential. Play is a universal language spoken by people of all ages, transcending national, cultural, and socio-economic boundaries. It fosters a sense of community and national pride as well as resilience, creativity and innovation. 

Play helps children with problem-solving, being creative and innovative. It supports their resilience, motivation and self-regulation, cooperation and social skills. Helping them in taking challenges, as well as providing therapeutic opportunities for those who’ve experienced trauma. 

This isn’t merely recreation but a universal language spoken by people of all ages. As the United Nations point out, restricting opportunities for play directly impedes a child's well-being and development. It impoverishes children and childhood. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child enshrines play as a fundamental right of every child under Article 31.

The United Nations international day creates a unifying moment at global, national, and local levels to elevate the importance of play. It signals a call for policies, training, and funding to get play integrated into education and community settings worldwide. Play has been under attack for a long time. Despite the myriad of benefits it provides, play has been under prioritised and had investment slashed. I believe this needs urgently redressing. 

Play England is currently developing a 10-year play strategy - calling on government to introduce Play Sufficiency legislation in England. Every child has the right to relax, play and take part in a wide range of cultural and artistic activities. 

An example of an area walking the talk in this regard and not waiting for  central government to catch up, is Sheffield. This is a city on the up and already developing its Play Partnership. This focuses on children’s and young people’s voice and influence, places and spaces, training and development, research, and consolidating and increasing play provision and funding for play. An emphasis upon family hubs and youth investment is also to the fore.

Others in the north of England are also championing play and play sufficiency, as well as youth services in their areas. It is about time! The whole of the north has higher levels of deprivation and many other avoidable problems arising from austerity cuts and the ravages of the North/South divide. We will all be counting the cost of the damage done by not letting children have play areas in the future without urgent action in every city, town and village.