ABSTRACT
Children of all ages, as seen in the chapters of this book,
whatever their background, culture, religion or gender,
pursue and enjoy opportunities to play imaginatively,
creatively and independently. Play can serve many im-
portant purposes, can be both directed and undirected
and is an essential part of child development and social interaction – ‘Oh, we’re just playing’. With increasing parental anxiety about the safety of our children playing
outside the home, in a world that may appear more dan-
gerous than ever before, many young people are denied
the freedom they need to simply ‘go out and play’ with
their friends. Indeed the first of several inquiries to be
published in 2008 by
the Children’s Society,
The Good Childhood
Inquiry has already
found parents regularly
deny their children the
same freedom to go out
unsupervised that they
had when they themselves were growing up.