The report, Grounds for Celebration - Measuring the Impact of School Grounds Projects in London, by the school grounds charity Learning Through Land-scapes, found that more than half (52 per cent) of settings whose playgrounds were improved saw a decrease in playtime bullying, while more than 80 per cent said they saw general improvements in children's behaviour and more social interaction between pupils.
The report analysed responses from 91 schools and settings in all 33 London boroughs that had received grants from the London Electricity School Grounds Awards Scheme, which is administered by Learning Through Landscapes, since it began six years ago.
Ninety per cent of the schools invited pupils to put forward ideas for their school grounds development plan and only 11 per cent did not receive any support from parents. Teachers were involved at every stage of the development process.
The report looked at 12 case studies of good practice in primary and secondary schools as well as two early years settings - the Thomas Coram Early Childhood Centre in Camden, which was awarded 500 to develop an outdoor science area, and the Rebecca Cheetham Early Excellence Centre in Newham, which received 2,000 to create and build a sensory tree sculpture.
The Thomas Coram Early Childhood Centre takes children who speak more than 40 different languages, including large numbers of refugees. 'Many of the children have no garden or outdoor space and live in cramped conditions.
The playground is therefore a very important space,' the report said.
In the foreword to the report, schools minister Stephen Twigg described school grounds as 'very precious environments' and said the case studies 'provide outstanding examples of ways in which London school grounds have been developed and are being used'.
Peter Carne, director of Learning Through Landscapes in London, said he was sure that children felt 'a stronger sense of belonging and a more protective attitude towards their school and fellow pupils' after taking part in the initiative.
He added, 'Involving the pupils at every stage of the project can have a very positive influence on children's attitudes and behaviour. This research confirms that making the most out of school grounds as a resource for learning and play has a major impact on children.'
The research was reviewed by Dr Robert Stratford, director of the educational psychology programme and senior lecturer in psychology at the University of Southampton. He said it was encouraging to see that school grounds 'can have a beneficial effect on behaviour and learning' at a time 'when society is increasingly concerned to meet the challenge of increasingly anti-social attitudes and behaviour in children and young people'.
Since 1997 almost 500 schools in all of London's 33 boroughs have entered the awards scheme, with more than 130,000 distributed to more than 198 schools. A further 23,000 of funding under the scheme was announced by Mr Twigg last week.
Contact Learning Through Landscapes on 020 8850 3112, e-mail london@ltl.org.uk,website www.ltl.org.uk.
