Playday

 

Play Scotland promotes the annual Playday celebration which traditionally takes place on the first Wednesday in August every year. Thousands of children and families take part in events across the UK

 

Playday is the annual celebration of children's right to play - a national campaign where children and young people get out and play at locally organised events.

A steering group guides the national coordination of Playday. Current membership: Play Scotland, Play England, Play Wales, Playboard N.I., London Play, SkillsActive and Leeds Play Network.

Anyone can host a Playday event. These events can be public or private, big or small. To find out how to host an event visit www.playday.org.uk

Playday 2010

We're pleased to announce the Playday 2010 campaign theme will be: ‘Our place'

The Playday ‘Our place' campaign puts children at the heart of our communities, and asks everyone, young and old, to help create better places for all of us to live and play.

The Playday ‘Our place' campaign will launch in the new year, and will build up to Playday on Wednesday 4 August. We really hope you're able to get involved, coordinate Playday events and local campaigns, and make 2010 celebrations the best ever.

Thanks to everyone who gave suggestions to our theme consultation. The top suggestions were play in our communities, intergenerational play, playing outdoors and free play. We felt the community theme was a strong and timely choice and it also allows us to combine the other top three suggestions within it.

Under the ‘Our place' theme, we will promote children as valued members of our communities. The campaign recognises the benefits of being part of a community and will encourage opportunities to get to know each other, across the generations. The campaign puts children's needs at the heart of our community spaces and aims to support children to develop their own independence and freedom to play outdoors where they live.

In the run up to Playday you may wish to coordinate a local campaign, highlighting issues specific to your community that stop children being able to play.

Last year, you celebrated Playday by coordinating over 830 local events and we hope you'll be able to do the same again this year. Playday events provide an opportunity for children, families and whole communities to celebrate children's right to play, and make a massive difference to community spirit at the same time. Over the coming months we will be providing ongoing support to Playday event organisers. Keep an eye out for an updated version of the Get organised! guide, seminars, postcards, web updates and lots more - details on the Playday website http://playday.org.uk/ or contact Amanda Godsell email: amandagodsell@playscotland.org

 


Playday 2009 - Make Time!

Playday 2009 was hosted on 5 August 2009.    This year theme was Make Time! and we were asking everyone, from  parents, carers, teachers, policy makers and planners to make time for play.

In our busy and overscheduled lives it’s easy to prioritise other things over play, and to think, play is something children just do. As adults, we all need to make time and space to enable children to play freely, and this is what we aimed to highlight with the Playday 2009: Make time! campaign.     



Playday 2008 - Give us a go!

The Playday Give us a go! campaign will promote the benefits of allowing children to manage their own risks whilst playing, and aims to counter the risk-averse 'cotton wool' culture that is increasingly prevalent. We will be calling for children and young people to be allowed challenging and adventurous play opportunities as enjoyed by previous generations before them.

The title also highlights:

  • Giving children and young people the same challenging play opportunities that us adults had when we were growing up.
  • Children and young people's voice asking adults to give them a chance to make their own judgements.
  • Evokes an exciting play opportunity with children keen to have a go.
  • Children's voice, what they would say to each other whilst playing.
  • Positive message.

The development of this year's theme and title follows consultation with Playday organisers, Playday update subscribers, children and young people, parents and wider play networks.

The Get organised! guide 2008 is available from the Playday web, providing advice on organising a Playday event and further guidance on this year's theme.

Further information can be found at www.playday.org.uk


Playday 2007

The theme for 2007 was:

Our streets too!

2007 was the twentieth anniversary of Playday, it was one of the biggest and best ever in Scotland and we would like to thank everyone who hosted an event.

Playday is partly about giving children, young people and families a great day out, but also aims to get some serious messages about play and children and young people across. Under the theme of Our streets too! there were some important messages to think about:

  • Children want and need to play in their local streets - and have the right to be there.
  • Traffic and fear prevent children playing in their local streets and can place them in danger.
  • Local streets should be planned, designed or adapted so that children and their families feel confident that they can play.
  • Streets that are good for play are good for the whole community.

Although Playday is only one day, children and young people should benefit from being able to play in the streets near their homes all year round. To ensure this can happen, consider planning a longer-term campaign to follow on from your Playday event. Refer to the information sheet Developing a campaign in this pack to give you ideas about developing a local campaign.

Playday website - www.playday.org.uk

For copies of Playday Research see Research Section