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Outdoor Play in Canada: 2021 State of the Sector Report Webinar

Louise de Lannoy, PhD

Research Manager, Outdoor Play Canada

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Land Acknowledgement

Outdoor Play Canada projects and activities encompass all traditional territories of the Indigenous Nations of Turtle Island, within the land we now call Canada.

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Outdoor Play Canada – What it is

Our Mission: Outdoor Play Canada (OPC) is a network of advocates, practitioners, researchers, and organizations working together to promote, protect, and preserve access to play in nature and the outdoors for all people living in Canada.

Our vision: Outdoor play is a valued part of daily life for all people living in Canada

OPC provides leadership to galvanize the outdoor play movement across Canada to promote the health and wellness of Canadians and the environments in which we live.

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Outdoor Play Canada – A Brief History

In 2014, we asked:

Have we, as a society, lost the appropriate balance between keeping children healthy and active and protecting them from serious harm?

If we make too many rules about what they can and can’t do, will we hinder their natural ability to develop and learn?

If we make injury prevention the ultimate goal of outdoor play spaces, will they be any fun?

Are children safer sitting on the couch instead of playing actively outside?

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“Access to active play in nature and outdoors – with its risks – is essential for healthy child development. We recommend increasing children’s opportunities for self-directed play outdoors in all settings – at home, at school, in child care, the community and nature.”

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Informed by 2 systematic reviews
Interpreted by Canadian experts from 14 organizations and reviewed by >1,600 stakeholders.
To date, there are 404 supporters of the Position Statement, including endorsement by the Council of Chief Medical Officers of Health
Research-grade report: www.mdpi.com/journal/ijerph.
Public facing document: https://www.outdoorplaycanada.ca/portfolio_page/the-2015-position-statement-on-active-outdoor-play/

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Impact of the Position Statement on Active Outdoor Play

Legal Precedent

In 2015, the District of Saanich was ruled not negligent in a case of a child getting hurt during a game of grounders, citing the Position Statement as evidence.

Charitable Sector Strategic Direction Shift

The Lawson Foundation invested $4.5 million in 18 projects between 2013-2018 that support Canadian communities to increase children’s opportunities for outdoor play.

Senate of Canada Policy Report

Obesity in Canada 2016 Report, led by the Standing Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology, was informed by the Position Statement, and cited declining rates of active play as an important contributor to childhood obesity.

Endorsement by the Chief Medical Officers of Health

In 2018, the Position Statement was endorsed by the Chief Medical Officers of Health in their own statement on active outdoor play.

Municipal Policy

The Peterborough & Region Public Health Policy Report was informed by the Position Statement and included free play as an important component of outdoor gathering spaces.

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Judge Baird, re Thompson v. Corp. of the District of Saanich, 09-30�"I was told that the District takes a more robust approach to children’s play. Its programs encourage physical outdoor activity. Risk-taking is encouraged within reasonable limits on the basis that children who never hazard a chance are unlikely to develop properly either physically or emotionally. The District has adopted the sort of thinking expressed in a document, handed up to me without objection as “social fact” evidence, entitled “The 2015 ParticipACTION Report Card on Physical For Children and Youth” (http://www.participaction.com/report-card-2015/). I suspect that most Canadians are aware, in a general way, of ParticipAction’s mission for a more vigorous national lifestyle. Their “report card” concludes, amongst other things, that long-term physical health and development should be valued as much as safety, and that rules and regulations designed to prevent injuries and reduce tort liability have become excessive and counter-productive to youth health and fitness. One of their rallying cries is: “Adults should get out of the way and let children play.” (page 5)

The Position Statement was included in the Director’s Report for the Renfrew County and District School Board and is being positioned as a knowledge sharing tool for other boards across Canada. Key issues for advocacy include recess not being used (or taken away) for disciplinary reasons, policies and school specific rules limiting play, policies that limit use of local forests and natural spaces, fort building etc.

Peterborough & Region - highest rates of playground injury in Ontario. Study was the impetus to the development of a background report on Healthy Complete Play Spaces to explore roles, relationships between injury prevention and outdoor play, association between injury rates and type of play environments.. Exploration of severitya dn frequency of injury. Drafting white paper to include cross sector guidelines and public health related impacts.�York Region - survey on risky play.�Ottawa Public Health and Lanark, Leeds and Grenville have both thread outdoor play and risky play into their health promotion strategies.

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State of the Sector Report

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State of the Sector Report Purpose:

A chronology of what has happened within the outdoor play sector since the publication of the Position Statement 6 years ago

An account of where we are now

A map of where we need to go from here in Canada to ensure that outdoor play is a valued part of daily life.

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Where we have been

A compendium of outdoor play projects, programs, services, and initiatives in Canada since 2015

Informally collected through social media (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram) and through our larger outdoor play networks
A living library of ongoing efforts in Canada (and internationally)
Collectively, we have identified >350 items (and counting)

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https://www.outdoorplaycanada.ca/resources/

An Online Library of Outdoor Play Resources

353 104 60 89 129 288 129

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Where we have been

A review of academic outdoor play publications written by Canadian authors since the Position Statement

When it was published, the Position Statement was informed by 49 publications related to outdoor play (not exclusive to Canada).

For this scoping review, we identified a total of 418 publications related to outdoor play in Canada

Analysis is underway...

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Scoping Review of Outdoor Play in Canada: 2015-2021

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Where we are now

A review of both academic and non-academic efforts to support outdoor play during COVID-19

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Environmental Scan of Canadian Outdoor Play-Based Programs, Projects, Services, and Activities during the COVID-19 Pandemic

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Where we are now

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Environmental Scan of Canadian Outdoor Play-Based Programs, Projects, Services, and Activities during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Systematic Search of Academic and Grey Literature

Child and youth-oriented programs, projects, services, and activities related to outdoor play that have emerged in response to COVID-19 restrictions

Key Informant Consultations

Input from a 63-person Consultation Group with representatives from government, policy, not-for-profit, and for-profit organizations, education, and research

Outdoor Play During COVID-19 Survey

distributed to child and youth outdoor play program providers

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Environmental Scan: Systematic Search of Academic and Grey Literature

79 academic articles, grey literature, and resource items
National in scope
Focused on supporting parents in bringing children and youth outdoors
Largest effort was in bringing materials online

Where we are now

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Environmental Scan: Outdoor Play During COVID-19 Survey

36 survey respondents

The majority of respondents led outdoor programs before the COVID-19 pandemic

The majority reported that demand had increased

Largest barrier was in adhering to COVID-19 related safety protocols and procedures

‘kindergarteners are not very good at not spreading germs’

Greatest learning was that children and youth thrive when outdoors

Where we are now

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��Where we need to go from here

63-person Consultation Group

with representatives from government, policy, not-for-profit, and for-profit organizations, education, and research

Priorities and Actions for the Outdoor Play Sector

This group met 4 times over 4 months to identify, refine, and vote on the major priorities for the outdoor play sector, and the corresponding actions that need to be taken to move these priorities forward

State of the Sector Stakeholder Survey

>300 respondents from across Canada

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Develop a Common Vision for the Outdoor Play Sector

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��Where we need to go from here

Outdoor play is important for the physical, mental, emotional, and social development of children and the health and wellbeing of people of all ages.

This priority is in recognition of these benefits and suggests how this information may be promoted across sectors

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Priority: Promote the Health, Wellbeing and Developmental Benefits of Outdoor Play

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��Where we need to go from here

This priority is inclusive of all outdoor spaces in which outdoor play may occur: built environments and natural spaces.

This priority takes into consideration the many factors associated with outdoor spaces (geographic, cultural, social, ecological) and differences between urban and rural, built cities and natural environments.

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Priority: Promote, Protect, Preserve and Invest in Outdoor Play Environments

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��Where we need to go from here

This priority is grounded in and builds upon the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which recognizes ‘the right of the child to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities appropriate to the age of the child’.

This priority is both a stand-alone priority and is embedded throughout all priorities.

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Priority: Advocate for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in Outdoor Play

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��Where we need to go from here

The phrasing of this priority was agreed upon by those who identify as Indigenous within the State of the Sector Report Consultation Group and was based on language used in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Calls to Action.
This priority is both a stand-alone priority and is embedded throughout all priorities.

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Priority: Ensure that Outdoor Play Initiatives are Land-Based and Represent the Diverse Cultures, Languages and Perspectives of Indigenous Peoples of North America

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��Where we need to go from here

This priority focuses on the need to reframe the way in which we provide outdoor play so that there is a better balance between protecting against injury and promoting beneficial play opportunities.

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Priority: Reframe Views on Safety and Outdoor Play

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��Where we need to go from here

This priority focuses on gaps in knowledge related to outdoor play, and what research and data collection efforts are needed to address those gaps.

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Priority: Research and Support Data Collection on Outdoor Play

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��Where we need to go from here

This priority highlights how the COVID-19 pandemic led to a rediscovery of the outdoors for physical and mental health, for enjoyment, fun, relaxation, and for a way to feel ‘normal’.
This rediscovery and renewed appreciation of the outdoors has great potential to be an accelerator for all these outdoor play priorities.

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Priority: Leverage Engagement Opportunities with the Outdoors During and After COVID-19

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��Where we need to go from here

This priority highlights the need to increase and improve professional development opportunities for all those involved in outdoor play (e.g., educators, parents, coaches, students).
Professional development opportunities can help shift mindsets and provide the tools to advocate for and promote outdoor play.

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Priority: Increase and Improve Professional Development Opportunities in Outdoor Play

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��Where we need to go from here

Outdoor play initiatives, programs and projects are found across many sectors.
This priority emphasizes the need to promote connections and collaborations across sectors so that we work together, learn from each other and amplify each other’s work.

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Priority: Expand and Enable Cross-Sectoral Connections/Collaborations

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�Join us!

Join the movement, become a member!

Benefits include:

Professional identity, cohesion, and engagement

Membership certificate
Networking opportunities

Professional development opportunities

Reduced registration fees for conferences, training
Opportunities to deliver OPC sponsored workshops and webinars

Stay informed

Communication of important events, training
Notice of the latest research and ideas in outdoor play

Recognition opportunities

Privilege of nominating candidates for OPC awards
Invitation for one representative to attend OPC annual general meeting

https://www.outdoorplaycanada.ca/#join-us

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Thank you!