New platform Playces launches to transform children’s access to play spaces
Our researchers have partnered with Play England and Passport365 to launch Playces, a new digital platform designed to help identify and address inequalities in access to playgrounds.
Researchers from Social Sciences at The University of Sheffield have partnered with the national charity Play England and software company Passport365 to launch Playces, a digital platform designed to help identify and address inequalities in access to playgrounds for children and young people.
Announced this week at the National Play Conference by Dr Michael Martin and Dr Paul Brindley - Playces is a nationwide map and database for playgrounds across England. By analysing the relationship between playground location, child population, deprivation and distance to playgrounds, the platform provides local authorities with vital evidence to identify gaps and target investment where it’s most needed.
The research behind Playces previously informed the government's £18 million National Playground Fund to create and upgrade facilities in underserved areas.
Co-lead researcher Dr Michael Martin (School of Geography and Planning) said "Over the past 18 months, we've strived to make the inequalities that exist for children and young people's access to play in England more visible.”
“Playces puts new evidence and insight into the hands of decision-makers to support better planning and targeted investment for children's right to play."
Eugene Minogue, Executive Director of Play England, said "For too long, decisions about where children's playgrounds are built have been made without a consistent national picture of where the need is, who it serves, and where the gaps are."
“Playces gives local authorities, government, and partners a much stronger basis for planning and investing in playgrounds that are more inclusive, accessible, and integrated into the places where children live."
Gary Johnson, Managing Director at Passport365, added “We're proud to have worked alongside Play England and the University of Sheffield as technology delivery partner for Playces, turning research, data, and sector expertise into a platform that's practical and accessible for everyone who uses it.
Our contribution has focused on making complex spatial evidence clear and useful, helping organisations understand their communities, identify inequalities in access to play and prioritise investment.”
Playces brings together Play England’s sector leadership, University of Sheffield research, and Passport365’s software technology to build a long-term national evidence infrastructure for play.
The ongoing collaboration will continue to expand current understanding on play deficiencies across England. Co-lead researcher Dr Paul Brindley (School of Architecture and Landscape) comments “Playces is designed to build a robust picture on play availability considering different play opportunities. Already we are adding adventure playgrounds and will continue to expand the platform”.
Interested in using the Playces platform to support play provision in your area? Get in touch with the team or via the Playces website.