Outdoor play transforms learning

Play makes up a quarter of a child’s day, yet it’s the one time that schools rarely plan for. When Watchlytes Primary School introduced a programme to improve the quality of playtime, the results were astounding. Sophie Wenlock, Head of School, explains how the Welwyn Garden City school successfully implemented OPAL … 

Working in primary schools, I had noticed a common theme in the playground – you either played football or you didn’t. And if you didn’t, there wasn’t much else to do.

Not only is this boring for those not aspiring to be the next Bukayo Saka, it can also affect friendship dynamics, leading to arguments and children feeling excluded. I spoke to our pupils about how they found playtime and they told me that they’d like to have more activities, so I started thinking about how we could make that happen.  

Around this time, I was approached by a parent who works at another school, and she told me about OPAL, a national programme to improve the quality of play. I went to visit a school which had introduced OPAL and immediately fell in love with it.  

The children were getting so much exercise, running around with sticks, building dens and generally having a fantastic time. Everyone was busy. This was a stark contrast to our playground where there were often pockets of children standing around talking and not doing a great deal else.

From idea to reality 

I returned to Watchlytes and spoke to the staff about what I’d seen. Together we discussed the pros and cons and what we wanted to achieve from this. The staff wanted a change because children were bringing conflict back into the classroom after lunchtime and this was disrupting lessons, as teachers had to intervene in arguments. We also knew that some children weren’t getting enough exercise. 

I did a lot of research into OPAL and the theory behind it and then I arranged an initial meeting. OPAL is a mentor supported school improvement programme that addresses all 18 areas that a school must plan for to sustainably improve the quality of play. Effectively, it provides a school action plan, guidance, support and resources such as risk assessments. However, we would need to fund the equipment. 

Fortunately, we have an amazing PSA who agreed to pay for it. We wouldn’t have been able to go ahead without them, so this was a huge boost and we are incredibly grateful. We put together a Play Team to drive the plans forward. It was important to get this team right and I really believe this is why the programme has been so successful. We developed a two-year action plan, mapped it out, and briefed staff, explaining that this was a gradual process and change wouldn’t happen overnight.  

At the beginning of the 2024/5 academic year, we held an inset day and the OPAL mentor came in to talk to staff. The mentor told us about what children can get out of play and what they’re not getting at the moment. What was lovely to see was our staff reflecting on their own childhood and what’s changed. Children don’t play out on the streets or run around the woods like we did, and this means they’re missing opportunities to develop skills like independence, resilience and risk-taking. 

To give us a benchmark, we sent a survey to parents to get their feedback on playtimes and looked at the number of behaviour incidents we’d had the previous term. This would help us to monitor the impact of the programme as it progressed. 

We held an assembly to introduce the children to OPAL and started gathering equipment. We made boards for each class with examples of donated items we’d love. We also sent a letter to parents, with detailed information about what OPAL was and why we were doing it. The donations started pouring in and they were great because we’d been so specific about the items we wanted and didn’t want. 

Putting theory into practice 

We launched OPAL in September, starting with what are called quick wins or low risk activities. We introduced seven to begin with, including chalkboards, small world play, sand, ball games of the week and a mud kitchen. 

Before any new activity was put on the playground, we held a play assembly where we introduced the activity and negotiated the play – how should this be played with? What should we not do? If we see someone playing unfaithfully, what should we do? 

Over the next few weeks, we introduced more activities and soon the children were building teepees and playing with our fabulous new sandpit boat. We opened the whole playground, including our play equipment and field, and set up a dressing up area, reading area and fairy garden. And this was just the beginning, the quick wins. 

Once we were ready for the next stage, we had another meeting with our OPAL mentor to discuss what’s known as the rapid risk stage. This is when you introduce play that’s a little bit riskier. At the same time, we began to change the mindset around risk. It’s not a negative anymore in our school, it’s an opportunity. 

We discussed this with the children in our play assembly, explaining that we were going to start den building, tree climbing and playing with different materials like tyres. We negotiated the play again and told the children that this would be monitored. Because they already knew the expectations before they even set foot on the playground, the transition to stage two of the programme has been smooth. 

The impact 

It’s been eight months since we first introduced OPAL. We were prepared for the long game, but we began to see a change almost immediately and the impact it’s had on our school has been massive. Our behaviour incidents have decreased dramatically, and children love playtime and return to class ready to learn. 

Pupils with SEN can now access all the activities on the playground and are having more positive interactions with their peers. Everyone is excited about going outside and this means we no longer run our indoor club, which we used to have for children who were struggling on the playground. We don’t need it now – there’s no one there. 

We’ve started seeing the individual strengths of our children more too. For example, we have instruments in the playground and some pupils have shown a great interest in music. This has enabled us to identify their talent, nurture this in school and share it with parents. We’ve seen children being imaginative with their play, a quality we hadn’t seen in them before. Parents have told us how much their child is enjoying school and how they love talking about what they did at playtime. 

The atmosphere on the playground is magical and everyone feels it. Our children are getting exciting learning opportunities throughout the entire school day and seeing them race into the playground is a joy. I’m excited to see what the future holds. 

Until then, sign me up for playground duty please.