Download PDF - Fair Play For Children

Case study – Dudley Children’s Trust
The Dudley Children’s Trust, based in the heart of the Black Country, has taken a lead in
bringing together all statutory, voluntary, community and third sector providers in the
development of its pioneering play strategy entitled Just Enjoy!
Over 6,000 children and members of the public were involved in identifying the key priorities
for the borough including deciding where to spend the £700,000 Big Lottery Fund Children’s
Play Initiative grant. In an area of only 38 square miles, and with a population of over 75,000
children and young people, school sites and playing fields form an essential part of the play
provision and green space for children across the borough.
Many head teachers and governors have come forward to make sure their valuable facilities
are available out of school hours. This includes one primary school that worked with the local
Tenants and Residents Association to apply for over £100,000 of lottery funding to open up its
school playing fields and build a new community multi-purpose games area and small
children’s play area on their land. The school is planning to position the fencing for the new
area on the school site, so that the new facility is open all hours and available for community
use at all times. For details of the Dudley programme, visit www.justenjoy.tv which also
advertises the new lottery funded play activities across the borough.
Physical activity, physical education and sport
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Children’s play has a key role in instilling from an early age an awareness of, and enthusiasm for,
healthy and active living, and thus is a significant contributor to reducing child obesity.
Unstructured play as a form of physical activity in the early years supports the development of
health and wellbeing and the subsequent benefits of this in later life.
Play, physical education and sport complement each other. Play is unorganised whereas sport
is organised and usually played within structured rules. Play is what children do of their own
volition, often making up their own informal rules. But it is through play that children often
have their first experiences of sport and develop basic sporting skills such as kicking a ball
around, racing their friends, or climbing.
Physical education (PE) is taught as part of compulsory education from ages five through to 16.
It differs from sport, play and physical activity in that it is compulsory, has a structured,
progressive programme of study, and, when taught properly, learning has to take place. In
physical activity and sport, the emphasis is on the activity; in PE, the emphasis is on the child.
Eighty six percent of 5–16 year olds now do at least two hours of high quality PE and sport a
week. The new PE and sport strategy for young people will offer all 5–16 year olds two hours of
high quality PE and sport within the school day, and all 5–19 year olds who want it will have
access to up to a further three hours of sport beyond the school day, delivered by a range of
school, community and club providers. This new commitment will be supported by a total
investment of £766 million revenue funding between 2008 and 2011.
Play can contribute to increasing the amount of physical activity, PE and school sport
undertaken by children and young people by engaging them in physical activity that they
enjoy. We want to see how new play arrangements can signpost children and young people
Fair Play: A consultation on the play strategy
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