Guildford PlayRangers is a free outdoor play service that is aimed at children and young people of all ages although any under 8’s attending must be accompanied by an adult. The sessions are run by representatives of the Guildford Borough Council and are thus free to attend. So with Love Outdoor Play Week approaching (17-21 March), the PlayRangers will be equipped with lots of play resources, games and ideas and have an exciting week planned for our youngsters!
PlayRangers has been running at different sites across the borough since 2010 and is funded and staffed by the Guildford Borough Council all year round. The PlayRanger Project is an open access service which means children are free to come and go as they want, but please be aware that it is not a childcare service!
The idea of this stimulating child service is that the staff engage children in their natural, green local spaces and encourage them to play outside. It really is an excellent way to engender healthy lifestyles in young people as they enjoy, achieve, manage risk and develop social skills. PlayRangers can be found in term time on one of five sites around Guildford depending on the day of the week, with each session being run from 3.30-5.30pm. You can check the website HERE for maps and further details on these five sites listed below.
Love Outdoor Play Week is a campaign being led by Re:Play, all about celebrating the play opportunities on offer in the fantastic green spaces across the South East of England. It is an annual celebration in its fifth year now with events organised all over the region to help children and young people get out and play. It hopes to encourage and promote outdoor play, whatever the weather and act as a reminder to play workers and families alike that outdoor play is not just for the summer.
Children can experience a whole raft of benefits from outdoor play and it is more important than ever that we encourage this with child obesity rates rising and all the technological distractions that kids have at their fingertips nowadays. Play not only improves physical fitness, but greater emotional well-being, improved self-esteem, confidence and better social skills. Spending time outside in nature also puts children in touch with their senses and has a calming influence, helping them to cope with stress.
And so this year PalyRangers have lined up some fantastic activities for Love Outdoor Play Week including; fire bowl cooking, geo-caching treasure hunts, dragon crafts, a legend teller, a smoothie bike and natural den building. The PlayRangers would love to see you all at this wonderful free community event that is being supported by many local councillors and the Mayor of Guildford will even be making an appearance on Thursday. Take a look at the poster above to see where the events will be taking place over the week of 17-21 March and go out and enjoy yourself!
Tom Burgess