Playgrounds as an Essential Amenity

A London organization is working to bring ‘adventure playgrounds’ to park-poor neighborhoods, arguing that outdoor play is a key factor in child development.

2 minute read

August 1, 2022, 6:00 AM PDT

By Diana Ionescu @aworkoffiction


“In London, where over a fifth of households have no garden space and the city has an average of 866 children per playground, one charity social initiative is working to put play at the forefront of the urban agenda for building up communities in London’s low-income neighborhoods.” According to an article by Alia Waheed in NextCity, play advocates like Paul Hocker of London Play say that play is “essential for childhood development,” Waheed writes. “Ideally, safety and children’s freedom to play should be a key factor in city and town planning.”

To encourage more outdoor play, “London Play Design has a team of carpenters, engineers and play workers who build sustainable and creative adventure playgrounds in some of the most deprived areas of London.”

At its heart, adventure play is unstructured, outdoor play that encourages children to take controlled risks in supervised outdoor spaces that allow children to play freely. At London Play Design’s adventure playgrounds, children can use tools to build play structures, grow plants and care for animals under the watch of professional play workers.

The article continues, “The playgrounds are supervised by play workers who run arts and crafts sessions and homework clubs. The workers offer local low-income families an alternative to traditional models of child care, which are often prohibitively expensive, and give children the opportunity to develop skills and build support networks within their communities.”

Advocates say playgrounds are more than a luxury. “Inequality of access to outdoor play goes beyond just having somewhere to sit on the swings. It has ramifications on health, education and social outcomes for children from deprived backgrounds. In the long term, it also affects mortality rates.”

Wednesday, July 27, 2022 in Next City

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Use Code 25for25 at checkout for 25% off an annual plan!

Redlining map of Oakland and Berkeley.

Rethinking Redlining

For decades we have blamed 100-year-old maps for the patterns of spatial racial inequity that persist in American cities today. An esteemed researcher says: we’ve got it all wrong.

May 15, 2025 - Alan Mallach

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

May 21, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Rendering of California High-Speed Rail station with bullet train.

California High-Speed Rail's Plan to Right Itself

The railroad's new CEO thinks he can get the project back on track. The stars will need to align this summer.

May 19, 2025 - Benjamin Schneider

Two Rivian trucks charging at Rivian branded charging ports.

US Senate Reverses California EV Mandate

The state planned to phase out the sale of gas-powered cars by 2035, a goal some carmakers deemed impossible to meet.

May 22 - CALmatters

Metal U.S. Geodetic Survey marker in stone in Arizona.

Trump Cuts Decimate Mapping Agency

The National Geodetic Survey maintains and updates critical spatial reference systems used extensively in both the public and private sectors.

May 22 - Wired

Close-up of 10 mph speed limit sign.

Washington Passes First US ‘Shared Streets’ Law

Cities will be allowed to lower speed limits to 10 miles per hour and prioritize pedestrians on certain streets.

May 22 - The Urbanist