Publications

We have put together this issue to highlight how opportunities for playing contribute to children’s wellbeing. The Playing for wellbeing issue includes:

• Opening streets for play, health and wellbeing
• Playing in an adventurous way: for wellbeing and as an antidote to anxiety – featuring a blog post written by Helen Dodd, Professor of Child Psychology at the University of Exeter
• Protecting playtime in school for wellbeing
• Wellbeing research with children in Wales – written by Mustafa Rasheed, a child health researcher at Swansea University
• Winter of Wellbeing – an update from the Welsh Goverment
• Playing into the future – how playing contributes to the Well-being of Future Generations Act
• Summer of Play – round up of Wales wide activity
• Children have their say on Ministerial Review of Play
• An update on the P³ playwork qualifications.

The making play sufficiency happen issue includes:

• Coronavirus – what children say about play according to recent research
• Play in lockdown – a child and four teenagers share their play experiences
• Playing out and about – examples of how play teams and organisations continue to support children’s opportunities to play across Wales
• Collaborating locally for health and well-being – a focus on Play Wales projects to deliver neighbourhood-based play provision, including a contribution by a Play Ambassador
• Sufficient playtimes in schools – resources to support schools to be as playful as possible
• Making it possible to do play sufficiency – Dr Wendy Russell gives an overview of a new research study
• Play sufficiency and the role of playworkers – how the playwork profession helps to secure enough opportunities for children to play
• Playwork training and qualifications – an update on online learning and P³
• Fun in the garden – a review by year 6 pupils at Tonysguboriau Primary School
• Playday 2020 – examples of how children across Wales celebrated this year’s national day for play.

The Our right to play issue includes:

• Play streets are awesome!
• Give us time to socialise and chill in high school
• Play in hospital
• Improving our school playground
• What is a childhood?
• Community support and play sessions
• Spotlight on ... Community Playscheme Playworker
• A child’s experience of the T? Pawb Play-Work Exhibition.
   

As well as:

• Guest editorial by the Children’s Commissioner for Wales, Sally Holland
• What children say about play in Wales – research findings
• Children’s views on playing out captured in national study
• Ministerial Review of Play – an update from the Deputy Minister for Health and Social Services, Julie Morgan AM.

The Play in schools issue includes:

• Time, space and permission to play in schools – including an example school play policy
• Supporting play in schools – Torfaen and the Vale
• Loose parts play at Mount Stuart Primary School – written by a teacher using loose parts for child-led learning
• Play and education rights: making the links
• Children and young people’s physical activity
• Research: children’s right to play in schools – an overview by researchers at the University of Manchester
• Joint statement on children’s play – key messages for schools
• An interview with the Deputy Minister for Health and Social Services, Julie Morgan AM
• Teenagers need play and leisure opportunities too – written by Seren Leconte, a member of the Children’s Commissioner for Wales’ Advisory Panel
• Spotlight on a Youth and Community Co-ordinator
• Seeking learners for a new playwork qualification
• Playful communities – lunchtime play at Ysgol Ty Ffynnon.

The 50th issue of the Play for Wales magazine also marks Play Wales’ twentieth anniversary. This extended Playful childhoods issue includes: 

• 20 years of Play Wales – staff and trustees’ highlights 
• Playful Childhoods – a new Play Wales campaign and partnership working 
• Fun in the dungeon – a storybook 
• Playing in Wales – capturing the views of children
• Playing through childhood – how children play at different ages 
• A childhood full of play – parents’ observations on their children’s play
• Playing out and about – a mother and her teenage children share experiences of play in their community 
• An interview with the Minister for Children 
• Using assistive technology to enable play for disabled children 
• 20 years of playwork training and qualifications in Wales 
• ‘Yr Iard’ – bringing together play, history and art at St Fagans National Museum of History. 
   

The Play and digital technology issue includes:

• Top tips: screen time and digital play
• Play and the plug: A playwork approach to screen time in children’s play
• Myth busting digital play
• An updated UNCRC for the digital age – Professor Sonia Livingstone
• Screen time: who’s really to blame? – Mark Sears, The Wild Network.

The Play – the importance of risk issue includes:

• Risky play for all children – Ally John
• Let us out of the bubble wrap – how adults can support children’s need for risky play
• Wales’ year of adventure – Ken Skates AM, Deputy Minister for Culture, Sport and Tourism;
• A study: UK and Germany outdoor play opportunities – Ellen Weaver
• Ever decreasing circles – Gill Byrne.

The Playing out and about issue includes:

• Playing out and about – article written by 11 year-old Oscar
• Tips for supporting children to play out confidently
• Fostering outside play – looked after children and the natural environment
• Looking back on the Big Lottery Fund Child’s Play programme
• Review of Professor Fraser Brown’s latest book – Play & Playwork: 101 Stories of Children Playing.

The Playing in the public realm issue includes:

• The European Network of Child Friendly Cities
• Child friendly city - Rotterdam; Wales - A Play Friendly Place
• Commit to supporting quality staff
• P3 level 3 - the latest
• Playwork Approaches in Schools

The A play-friendly Wales issue includes:

• An analysis of the Play Sufficiency Assessment duty
• Responding to the research (Leopard Skin Wellies, a Top Hat and a Vacuum Cleaner Hose: An analysis of Wales’ Play Sufficiency Assessment duty)
• Innovative approaches to play sufficiency
• Purple Routes schools projec
•  An interview with Ken Worpole.

The Assessing Sufficiency issue includes:

• Guest editorial from the Children's Commissioner for Wales, Keith Towler
• Articles about the Welsh Government Play Sufficiency Duty and the toolkit to support Local Authorities to assess the sufficiency of play opportunities in their areas
• Interview with Judith Hackitt, Chair of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE)
• P3 update
• Wales - A Play Friendly Place case study.

The Play: places and spaces issue includes:

• Play Sufficiency Duty update
• Developing and managing play spaces
• Play spaces: common complaints and simple solutions
• Book review by Ben Tawil
• Ripping up the rulebook article by Bernard Spiegal.

The right to play issue includes:

• Play and Children's Rights
• Agenda for children's play in Wales
• Playing into the Future - surviving and thriving - IPA 2011 conference update
• Play and 'Making poverty less damaging for children'
• What's happening around Wales? (play provision and development).

The Play - improving opportunities issue includes:

• Editorial by Keith Towler, Children's Commissioner for Wales
• A BIG new adventure begins - Child's Play programme update
• Playworkers at Eisteddfod yr Urdd
• A young reporter interviewing Helen Mary Jones AM about the National Assembly for Wales inquiry into safe places to play and hang out
• Review of Possible Summers: stories and reflections from the playscpace.

The Play and Sustainability - Why make time for play? issue includes:

• Play Services and Sustainability
• Raising our profile
• Playday events from around Wales
• P3 available for schools.

The Play in the computer age: Play and the Plug issue includes:

• On outdoor electronic play equipment
• Our survey says
• Busting computer myths
• Potential in Playwork - learning and growing.

The Play in time and space issue includes

• Children's privacy,
• Hospital play
• Rhodri Morgan on Playday
• Children's Commissioners Report.

The Play and Participation issue includes:

• National Standards for Children and Young People's Participation
• Funky Dragon report
• Participation and playwork - an interview with Roger Hart
• Interview with the new Children's Commissioner
• P3 - the impact.

The Playing in the Streets issue includes: 

• Home zones - Legislation and policy in Wales
• Going out to Play
• Tips for supporting children to play out confidently
• New Centre for Playwork Education and Training in Wales
• Play Learn and Grow.

The Play Spaces issue includes: 

• Tribute to Peter Clarke
• Playgrounds - getting it right
• Welcome to a Flintshire playground
• Play spaces in Berlin
• Interview with a Playwork trainer.

This issue includes: 

• BIG lottery news
• Implementation Timetable
• Glossary: What is Play?
• Cwlwm Project Update - New Playwork Materials
• What a Play Strategy means for Playworkers

This issue includes: 

• Play in School,
• Play Stratey Consultation Response
• Big Lottery
• Open Access in Powys.

This issue includes: 

• Big Lottery Consultation
• The Elusive £200m
• Play Wales's response to the Assembly Play Consultation
• New Principles for Playwork.

This issue includes: 

• Play Values Review
• CSIW recruits playworkers
• Play in Sweden.

This issue includes: 

• The National Play Review
• Open Acces Play
• Home Zones
• Playing Out.