Government told to ditch 'NO BALL GAMES' signs and ban phones in schools after screens blamed for 50pc decline in time playing outside

Daily Mail​

5 days ago

'No Ball Games' signs should be banned to encourage children to stop 'doomscrolling' on mobile phones as outdoor play has halved in a generation, the Government has been urged.
A new inquiry calls for smartphones to be banned in schools as part of a national strategy to get young people outdoors and 'disrupt the addictive grip of digital devices on children's lives'.
Time spent playing outside has declined by 50 per cent in a generation and children now travel shorter and shorter distances independently, the research found.
More than half of parents believe their youngest child plays outside less than they did and 75 per cent agree that society is less accepting of children playing out than when they were children.
Cuts to clubs and playgrounds, busier roads and increased fears among parents and children about safety have left children with fewer places to play, the Raising the Nation Play Commission found.
Children's independence to play outside has shrunk dramatically over the last 30 years, impacting their health and happiness and increasing screen time, the year-long independent inquiry found.
Paul Lindley, chair of the commission, said that play is a 'crucial and innate part of childhood' and needs to be at the 'heart of government strategy' for children's education and wellbeing.
He said: 'It is one of the most powerful tools we have to boost children's physical activity, wellbeing, and confidence. Yet as this report shows, in England we've made it incredibly hard for children to play.'
Mr Lindley said that safe streets, reduced crime and the 'reversal of the growing culture of intolerance towards children playing' is crucial to make it safer for kids to play outdoors.
'This will also encourage more parents to have confidence they can let their children play out more freely, in the knowledge that their children will be both having a great time and are also safe,' he added.
Among the proposals to increase childrens' time spent outdoors is a ban on 'No Ball Games' signs, raising the 'digital age of consent' to 16 from 13 to keep younger children off social media, restoring play to the national curriculum and banning phones during the school day.
Researchers argue that getting children off the sofa and outdoors would be a 'powerful tool' for reducing obesity and tackling the crises in youth mental health and school attendance.
The proposals have the backing of more than 1,000 GPs, headteachers, charity bosses and council leaders, who have written to ministers to call for a new 'national play strategy' to be established.
Among those backing the proposals is former Children's Commissioner Baroness Anne Longfield, who said that 'too many of our children are spending their most precious years sedentary, doom scrolling on their phones and often alone, while their health and wellbeing deteriorates'.
She added: 'Play is being squeezed out of childhoods, with drastic implications for children, our economy and public services.
'With so much at stake children really have everything to play for: their health, wellbeing, happiness, learning, and development depends on our ability to reignite the role of play.'