Community Play Worker Project

Funding has been dramatically reduced for play support within Wales. Conversations held as part of the Neath Port Talbot Council’s Play Sufficiency Assessment highlighted that children and families feel that there are barriers to accessing play. The three main barriers were cost, weather and technology. 

This project will help children and parents understand that play does not need to cost anything, can be undertaken rain or shine and doesn’t need to involve the use of screens!!  Four Community Play Workers are being recruited to work with schools in order undertake a play improvement project. 

The play workers will be supporting and extending children’s play by acting on cues to intervene with ideas, suggestions and support. They will encourage the safe use of equipment and loose parts (junk items used for play) and work with Play Heroes (children from years 5/6 appointed as play improvers) and within the local community to offer play sessions at outreach events to improve play understanding and uptake of play opportunities.

Data collected during the project will relate to children’s satisfaction of the play opportunities available to them, supervisor’s view of behaviour, and teacher’s measure of concentration and engagement after the lunchtime period and parents/community member’s perception of play outside of school. iPads will enable data collection and real time analysis, aiming to be a quick and simple tool for all participants to use.  This information will be assessed to inform progression and enable the project to be dynamic and suit the needs of the recipients.  A Play Toolkit will be completed at the end of the project to share with other schools to encourage play at school and ensure that a Child’s Right to Play (article 31 of the United Nations Convention of the Rights of the Child) is met.

CPW Pilot Study.pdf

[.PDF, 1.15 MB]