‘I’d rather be playing’ – our new survey finds children in Wales want to play more but having no one to play with, TikTok and uninspiring play places can stop them

With almost 70% of children saying playing makes them feel happy and excited, we are calling on parents, carers and communities across Wales to give children more Time to Play – at home and out in their neighbourhoods with friends.

Why more Time to Play?

We asked 500 parents with children under 15 and 500 children aged 5 to 15 in Wales what they thought about play and this is what they told us:

• Children surveyed said they’d like to play more (over 60% would like to play more than five times a week), yet over 30% say scrolling on TikTok and watching YouTube videos is stopping them from doing so.
• 91% of parents say playing has a positive impact on the mental health of their children, with almost 70% of children saying playing makes them feel happy and excited. Yet, over 20% of children say having no one to play with stops them from playing.
• 90% of children say they’re generally happy with the places they play, from playing outside in nature to playing on the street or on the pavement, to playing a play centre like an afterschool club, or at school playground, to a skatepark, or at home. However, 10% say they can’t do any of the things they’d like to at these places.
  
  

What children told us

Children have told us how playing makes them feel, like 10-year-old Aneurin York from Barry who said: 

‘I really like playing because it actually helps me in life with stuff and helps me know how I’m feeling. It also shows people how to express their feelings without having to hide them from anyone’.

Talking about why she’d rather be playing, 13-year-old Summer Pritchard from Treherbert said:

‘Playing makes me feel free. And if I didn’t have a playing to turn to, I’d just be in my room watching TikTok on my phone’.

Get involved

We are keen to encourage and support parents and carers to inspire and motivate more opportunities for their children to play – this summer and beyond – despite social barriers.  

For the latest Time to Play updates – and to hear more about what children have to say about the importance of playing in their lives – follow our Facebook and Instagram or the #TimeToPlay hashtag.