There's No Play At Home

Model wears jumpers and scarf from The Happysads AW18 Collection by Bobo Choses, courtesy of Sister's Guild sistersguild.com. Jeans models own.

Joby Sessions

Mental Health

THERE’S NO PLAY AT HOME

Jane Bennett explores her thoughts on play and tells about how she plays football in four inch stilettos

Models wear jumpers and scarf from The Happysads AW18 Collection by

Bobo Choses, courtesy of Sister’s Guild sistersguild.co.uk. Jeans models own.

© Joby Sessions | onetwentypictures.com

My conversation with my best friend this morning started like this: ‘Do you remember so and so?’ she says. ‘Oh yes, from nursery and school – thingy’s Mum’, I replied. ‘Now I know who you mean! The ones who didn’t have a telly’. ‘Yep, that’s them.’ I confirm. ‘They played board games’. ‘Oh, I can never get mine to agree to that’, I sighed. ‘No. Just causes arguments here’, she said. Then we both sighed.

Yet, as I type this, my children are playing football in the park, both of them, and a friend, while I prepare dinner. I’m slightly anxious as none of them has a mobile phone, but one has a watch and a time to be home.

I should play more. I offer, I suggest what I deem to be fun things, but the lure of consoles often overrides. I’m not sure I was ever that great at getting down on

the floor playing for lengths of time. A toddler group was a chance for a rare sit down and a coffee with an adult; home always had other ‘pressing’ things to attend to. Although I am often found in my smart work dress, kicking a football in the street outside whilst pointing out my unsuitable shoes and trying to explain why I’d rather not header the ball as I’d prefer to keep the remaining brain cells I have. Mum opening the garage to get the football out for a kick about, or picking up a Swingball bat is what does it these days.

As an only child, I happily played alone. Dad would be at his office, Mum was busy working in the kitchen at home. There were only 3 channels on the TV and you watched your programme when it was on!

I loved when Granny would visit – she was elderly but played card games with me.

Friends would come and we’d make up games; I had imaginary friends – with my new found spirituality I think I still do. I grew up on the outskirts of London,

in the green belt with open fields and woods to run in and explore. Modern estates often do not have this luxury and are not built with sufficient area or amenities for children. Often a small patch of land, with tired equipment is all there will be; many children’s centres have closed due to cuts. We have somehow lost the freedom and the areas to just ‘play’.

The importance of play for our children’s development is now being seen as more significant – the imagination, being creative, running free, community, interacting. Wales is setting an example with its play provision; each local authority, according to a measure passed by Members of Parliament in Cardiff in 2010, ‘must secure sufficient play opportunities in its area for children’. Surely this needs to be rolled out before future generations only learn about the real, hands on, messy, muddy play of our own childhood through their history lessons.

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