March Adventure Playground Network Meeting

Mark your calendars! The next Adventure Playground Network meeting will take place on Wednesday, 26th March and be chaired by Steven Chown.

Steven has been immersed in playwork since 1983, working on adventure playgrounds in Exeter, Cambridge, and York. He now serves as a trustee of Play Torbay, managing two adventure playgrounds: Indigos in Brixham and Wildfox in Paignton.

Previously, Steven was the Programme Manager at Play England, leading neighbourhood, social action, and community play contracts with the Westminster Government. He also has “the joy and pain” of getting the Managing Risk in Play Provision Implementation Guide and People Make Play to publication.

As ever, the Network is a forum to share ideas and experiences from adventure playgrounds.

There will be an opportunity to:

• reflect on the recent Playwork Conference in Eastbourne;
• hear feedback from the London Adventure Playground Meet Up at Martin Luther King Adventure Playground led by Fiona Sutherland, London Play;
• and, take part in a discussion about how we respond to the Play Commission Interim Report on the State of Play led by Mike Wragg, Play Bradford.

For those who have not had a chance to read the whole document, the report says:

“Adventure playgrounds can be particularly effective in encouraging children and young people into natural spaces, and we have received a wealth of evidence specifically about their importance and how they can differ from the typical ‘local playground’. We are planning to hear more from adventure playground practitioners ahead of our final report publication in June”

There will also be a follow up to the Mentimeter survey trialled by Sereena Keymatlian (Haringey Play Association) at Eastbourne with questions her playworkers wanted to ask delegates about current practice; with an opportunity to ask your own question in real time.

Plus, latest news on the insurance survey, mapping adventure playgrounds and the design of a potential survey on adventure playground funding.

Don’t forget to put future dates in your diary. All dates can be found on the Network’s dedicated webpage playwork.foundation/apn.

If there is something you would like to raise with the Network, or (like Steven) you would like to chair a Network meeting or present on a topic, you can contact our dedicated inbox: apn@playwork.foundation.