Cotton wool children: Just one in five plays outside every day and one in ten has never ridden a bike
- Children a third less likely to play outside as their parents when they were young
Parents are now so over-protective towards their children that one youngster in five does not go outside to play.
A third of youngsters have never climbed a tree, or built a den, and one in ten cannot even ride a bike, a study found.
The figures were released by the Play England charity, who asked 2,000 children about their leisure pursuits.
Research: Parents are now so over-protective towards their children that one youngster in five does not go outside to play
They discovered that today’s children are less than a third as likely to play outside as their parents were when they were young.
Last night a minister blamed the ‘cotton wool culture’ which has grown up over the past decade, with parents being over-cautious about outdoor play.
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Nick Hurd, the minister for civil society, called on mothers and fathers to use their common sense and manage risks sensibly.
‘I think we all know the importance of play to children,’ he said. ‘Over the past ten years a culture of red tape has stifled the freedom of children to climb trees, make dens and enjoy the simple pleasure of outdoor play.’
Staying in: Nick Hurd, the minister for civil society, called on mothers and fathers to use their common sense and not be over-cautious about outdoor play
The poll found that seven in ten parents consider taking their children to an outside space to play to be a real treat and children feel the same, with a reported 59 per cent wishing they could play outside more.
Just 21 per cent of today’s six to 15-year-olds play outdoors daily near their home, compared to 71 per cent of their parents when they were young.
Catherine Prisk, director of Play England, said: ‘Playing outside, chalking on the pavement, climbing trees and riding your bike are simple pleasures that many of today’s children are missing out on.
‘Play is essential for children’s health and happiness now, and is also essential for making friends, building key skills for the future and for feeling you are part of a community.
‘Our Love Outdoor Play Campaign – backed up by real opportunities offered by local organisations across the country – will make it easy for everyone to get involved in making England a place where children once more have the freedom to play outside every day after school and in the holidays.’
Yesterday, a minister said children should be taken litter-picking to teach them not to drop rubbish.
Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman, a keen runner, said she was ‘appalled’ at the waste strewn on roadsides when she exercised in country lanes.
‘When I go jogging round the lanes where I live in the countryside it appals me to find what is dropped casually out of the car windows,’ she said.
‘It’s systematically cleared by the council and then within a very short period of time it’s back.’
Speaking at environment questions in the Commons, she added: ‘It’s about changing the behaviour and we have to start in school, educating children, taking them with us on litter-picking, because it then dawns on them very clearly what a nuisance this is.’
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