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In the Holbeck area of Leeds, a residential street called Colenso Mount has been temporarily closed to traffic and transformed into a ‘Play Street,’ offering children like seven-year-old Aydin a safe and spacious environment to enjoy outdoor activities. Aydin expresses his excitement about the space where kids can ride scooters, play football, and engage in other games without the usual dangers from passing vehicles. Such dedicated areas provide a rare opportunity for children to socialize and play freely, something often limited in many neighborhoods.
A recent survey conducted by the campaign group Play Their Way reveals that nearly half of parents feel their children lack a safe outdoor space to play. This finding has led to calls for the reintroduction of a national play strategy in England, an initiative originally promoted by the then culture secretary in 2008. Wales and Scotland have already implemented legal measures requiring local authorities to provide sufficient play opportunities. However, groups like Play England highlight that access to quality playgrounds and play options remains insufficient across many parts of England. The government has responded by investing £18 million to reopen lost play spaces and is promoting free stay-and-play sessions in new community centers, alongside offering parents updated advice on screen time and introducing planning rules to protect playgrounds.
Creating safer environments for outdoor play addresses concerns raised by a year-long study from the Centre for Young Lives, which found that contemporary children spend roughly half as much time in unstructured outdoor play compared to previous generations. The research attributes this reduction to factors such as increased traffic, growing use of screens, and a societal intolerance of children playing in public. Local parents like Beth appreciate the street closures as they make them feel more comfortable letting their children play outside. Another local resident, Kate, values the Play Street for fostering community spirit by enabling neighbors to meet and children to engage in outdoor activities right outside their homes.
The concept of Play Streets, where residential roads are regularly closed off to traffic for children’s play, began in 2009 in Bristol. Alice Ferguson, one of the originators, emphasizes the importance of safe spaces for children’s well-being and advocates for producing organized play environments. Playing Out, the campaign group she founded, estimates that more than 1,600 streets across about 100 UK councils now host Play Streets, though policies and requirements vary widely. Fiona notes that having a clear national policy would provide residents and councils with guidance and confidence to safely close streets. Successful Play Streets typically include road closure signs, physical barriers, and volunteer monitors to control access. In Leeds, Catherine Peacock of KidzKlub has coordinated around 100 Play Streets over recent years, expanding from her initial efforts on her own street to include other neighborhoods, especially targeting underprivileged areas to increase equitable access to play spaces. Leeds City Council emphasizes the importance of incorporating play into urban planning and ensuring new developments consider children’s needs for play within their design. Meanwhile, children like ten-year-old Mohamed at Colenso Mount look forward to future opportunities to safely play football and enjoy the benefits of such community initiatives
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