2009 research
We have published a comprehensive body of research
to support the Playday 2009 Make time! campaign.
An opinion poll conducted by ICM found
that nearly three-quarters of parents (72%) want more time to play
with their children or to take them places to play.
More than half of parents (52%) feel that
work, or other unavoidable commitments, limit their time to support
their children to play. This pressure is intensified by the fact
that half of parents say there aren’t enough places where they
live, for children to play safely without an adult.
The research also found that children are
facing pressures on their time too, with homework and
extra-curricular activities impacting heavily on children’s free
time. A third of children (34%) and a quarter of 7-8 year olds
(25%) report that homework often stops them playing, and nearly
half of adults (47%), think children should go to fewer
extra-curricular activities.
Children told researchers that being denied
time to play makes them feel bored, unhappy and miss their friends.
Parents recognise this, and report that children are naughty (72%)
and angry (62%) if they haven’t had enough time to play.
When asked what should happen for children to
have more time to play, 73% of adults surveyed (increasing to 76%
of parents) said they would like more places to play where children
can go independently, and 61% (rising to 66% of parents) would like
flexible working arrangements for parents.
Download the Playday 2009 research
reports:
New Playday schools
research
To coincide with the return to school, we have released new
findings from the Playday opinion poll about play in schools. The
opinion poll findings show that parents and children support our
call for schools to make time for play.