Summary of Consultation Paper:
We need your comments!
Consultation on statutory guidance on play opportunities
Local Authorities (LAs) are being asked to to assess the sufficiency of play opportunities for children in their areas.
Start of consultation: 13/04/2012
End of consultation: 25/06/2012
Use the following link for fuller details:
Copy
of Play Sufficiency to submitted to Welsh Government by 1st March 2013
This needs
to be part of the Single Integrated Plan, required from Local Service Board on
31st March 2013.
(the play sufficiency assessment must
contribute to the overall needs assessment
for securing sufficient play opportunities and incorporated into the
Single Integrated Plan.)
In Powys we already have the an Integrated Plan: The One Powys Plan.
Progress
on securing play opportunities should be reviewed annually with further Play
Sufficiency Assessment being carried out every 3 years.
What is meant by "Play":
“Play
encompasses children’s behaviour which is freely chosen, personally
directed
and intrinsically motivated. It is performed for no external goal or
reward,
and is a fundamental and integral part of healthy development - not
only
for individual children, but also for the society in which they live”.
However,
for this purpose Play also includes “any recreational activity”: this
Includes
junior and youth clubs; leisure centre
and sporting activities; cultural and arts activities; and events organised for
children and their families. These recreational activities may offer a
combination of organised activities, and opportunities for freely chosen and
child led play. In any of these situations children should have the choice of
taking part and a voice in what opportunities are offered and how they are
organised.
The
range of play opportunities that are covered under the Measure as
being:-
•
Freely chosen Play - With or without adult supervision.
•
Structured recreational activities - For children and young people
What will be covered in
the sufficiency audit?
Population
Diverse
needs
Space
available for child’s play
Access
to space
Play
workforce
Information,
publicity and events
Supervised
play and structured recreational activities
How does this link with the Local Service Board & a Single Integrated Plan?
The
Single Integrated Plan is increasingly becoming the mechanism through which
action
on local priorities is planned and delivered, and outcomes monitored and
evaluated,
based on an assessment of local needs. Action to develop, monitor and
scrutinise
the Single Integrated plan is coordinated by the Local Service Board,
bringing
together leaders of local government, the NHS, the police, third sector and
the
Welsh Government itself.
Local
authority representatives on the Local Service Board should ensure that the
Play
Sufficiency Assessments form part of the local needs assessment and that the
assessment
and the proposals for securing sufficient play opportunities are
integrated
into the planning, implementation and review of the Single Integrated Plan
at
every stage of the planning cycle.
Action
plans are the essential building blocks of the Single Integrated Plan, and set
out
in detail what actions each of the Local Service Board partners will undertake
over
3–5 years to achieve outcomes which contribute towards identified long-term
goals.
Legal
duties on local partners in respect of play remain.
How will all agencies to identify and secure sufficient play?
All agencies will need to work together in partnership to identify & secure sufficient play.
The
relevant partnerships are likely to include:
•
Town and Community Councils.
•
Third sector organisations.
•
The private sector if appropriate.
•
Community groups.
•
Children and their families.
Working
across borders with other authorities is also encouraged to ensure all children
in Wales access play.
Because
play covers a wide range of provision; facilities; services and community
organisation,
it is essential that budgets that cover all these areas contribute towards
the
purpose of securing sufficient play opportunities.
Local
partners should identify and use these budgets, including reprioritisation if
necessary,
to ensure that there are sufficient resources to secure the play
opportunities
required for its area.
How should consultation be undertaken and with whom?
For
play opportunities to meet the requirements of children it is essential that
they
are
consulted on what they want from play and leisure activities.
The
Local Authority should consult with children as to what play opportunities;
play
provision;
activities and events they want in their area.
The
participation and consultation methods should comply with the Welsh
Government’s Children and Young People’s Participation Standards and section 12
of the Children and Families (Wales) Measure 2010 on Participation.
The
Authority should also consult with
parents;
the local community and any other interested stakeholder on the
development
of play opportunities and developing child and play friendly
communities.
The
assessment should take into account:
•
The views of children, obtained through consultations, on what play and
leisure
provision they want in their areas; how they would like their
neighbourhood
to be organised to provide the play opportunities they
want;
and what barriers stop them from playing.
•
An analysis of the results of these consultations and how these have or
will
be used to inform future plans.
•
The views of parents, families and other stakeholders, obtained through
consultation,
on play provision/opportunities and how this has or will inform
future
plans.
