Inclusion is not an option, it is every child’s right to play and to access local play provision, but how do we make it work? A Bevan Foundation report on play and leisure activities found that: ‘Disabled children and young people face barriers from lack of provision, lack of support, poor access to buildings and negative attitudes which, notwithstanding legislation and policies, prevent them from participating like non-disabled children and young people.’1 This information sheet, for play providers, aims to offer some practical steps to overcome the barriers to inclusion so that disabled children and young people can access play provision.
Playwork Principle 1 states: All children and young people need to play. The impulse to play is innate. Play is a biological, psychological and social necessity, and is fundamental to the healthy development and wellbeing of individuals and communities. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) Article 23 states: Children who have any kind of disability should have special care and support so that they can lead full and independent lives. UN General Comment on Article 23 states: Play has been recognised as the best source of learning various skills, including social skills. The attainment of full inclusion of children with disabilities in the society is realised when children are given the opportunity, places, and time to play with each other (children with disabilities and no disabilities). The UNCRC Article 31 states: Every child has the right to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities appropriate to the age of the child and to participate freely in cultural life and the arts. The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Article 30 states: Ensure that children with disabilities have equal access with other children to participation in play, recreation, sporting and leisure activities
… Pro-active measures are needed to remove the barriers and promote accessibility to and availability of inclusive opportunities to participate in all these activities. The Children and Families (Wales) Measure: All Local Authorities are required to assess the sufficiency of play opportunities for children within its area. Playing is crucial to children’s physical, mental, social and emotional health and wellbeing, and therefore to their families and to communities as a whole. Children have an inborn urge to play – recent research suggests that playing has an impact on the physical and chemical development of the brain – it ‘influences children’s ability to adapt to, survive, thrive and shape their social and physical environments’2. All children are morally and legally entitled to play within their own community whatever their culture, impairment, gender, language, background, behaviour or need. Inclusive play means that all children and young people have equal access to good quality local play provision. This means that they can play with others or alone as they wish in a rich environment that supports their play needs and gives them access to a wide range of play opportunities.