'Discover the power of play'

It’s hard to imagine what life must have been like as a young child during lockdown. 

No playgrounds, no parents and toddler groups and no soft play. No play dates and no nursery, pre-school or childminder. Only being allowed outside once a day at the height of the pandemic, and even then being told not to go anywhere near other people. Not seeing family and friends in real life for months on end. Hearing vague talk of germs, viruses, and even death. 

As a grown adult, the pandemic and the fundamental way it has changed our daily lives has affected me profoundly. There is no doubt in my mind, therefore, that our youngest children – some of whom have lived the majority of their lives in some kind of lockdown – will have been affected in ways that we may not be able to see for some time. 

Back in March, the Alliance carried out a sector survey looking at the impact of the pandemic on child development. Of the more than 1,300 education professionals who responded, around half (47 per cent) believed the attainment gap has grown among under-fives over the course of the pandemic, with 11 per cent describing the gap as ‘significantly bigger’. 

And while much of the Government’s talk of education ‘catch-up’ and ‘recovery’ in the early years has so far focused on literacy, and communication and language, it is personal, social and emotional development (PSED) that our survey respondents highlighted as the most impacted prime area of learning and development during the pandemic. In fact, almost all (94 per cent) of respondents who said that they observed negative changes in the learning and development of children when they returned to their setting after lockdown identified PSED as an area of concern. 

That’s why we at the Alliance are so excited to be running our National Week of Play this week. Because we know how vital play is to early learning and development. We know that play is how children learn to express their feelings, manage their emotions and socialise both with adults and their peers. 

Free resources

The aim of the National Week of Play is simple: we want to encourage and inspire early years professionals to ensure that learning through play is at the heart of their practice, and to support parents to discover and explore new play ideas for the home learning environment. 

As part of this, we are providing a free resource pack to anyone who signs up, which contains a range of materials to support this, including activity ideas for the setting and home; guidance and support materials to help you plan your own Play Week event; resources to help you promote your involvement in Play Week to parents and in the local media; and template letters to help get your local MP or councillors involved too. 

We’re also delighted to have hosted a fascinating and inspiring panel discussion between Helen Moylett, Professor Cathy Nutbrown, Nancy Stewart, Anni McTavish, on the value of pay, the recording of which will be made available to the sector this week. 

Of course, we know the importance of play will last well beyond this week – which is why we’re also really excited to be supporting the #SummerOfPlay campaign, led by a host of organisations including Playfirst UK, Save the Children, Playing Out and Play England. 

As we slowly move to the ‘new normal’, now is a unique opportunity to raise the profile of play and to remember that, as put so well by Professor Nutbrown: ‘Play is like oxygen to young and developing bodies and minds. Play is a life force for us all.’ 

We hope that you will all join us in celebrating that fact. 

To sign up for the Alliance’s National Week of Play, visit here