ABSTRACT
This chapter investigates in detail home-related, habitual territories: the use of ancillary indoor/outdoor play spaces within the domestic domain and the extension of play into contiguous public spaces. The high rank given to home sites in the drawings indicated home to be the centre of family life and a child's ultimate haven of security and comfort. 'Outdoor' children seemed to be either 'pulled' by the intrinsic qualities of the landscape, or 'pushed' by the lack of suitable space at home—where only small amounts of mess and noise were tolerated by parents and other household members. Even when the time-and-space constraints were absent, many children still preferred to play informal ball games in the more varied spaces available close to home. 'Fronts' and 'backs' provided special play opportunities because they were so adaptable and were located close to home. Any child playing on lawn or parking area was subject to uncomfortable surveillance by adult tenants passing by or looking out from their windows.
