“I think that we should, but I don’t think that we can”: what school staff think about adventurous play at schools in England

Nesbit, R. J., Harvey, K. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6819-0934 and Dodd, H. F. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1446-5338 (2025) “I think that we should, but I don’t think that we can”: what school staff think about adventurous play at schools in England. Journal of Adventure Education & Outdoor Learning. ISSN 1754-0402 doi: 10.1080/14729679.2025.2486844

Abstract/Summary

Adventurous play is increasingly recognised as important for children’s health and development. Schools act as gatekeepers for children’s opportunities for regular, outdoor, adventurous play during breaktimes (recess). In this study, we interviewed 13 school staff working in England to find out what they thought about adventurous play happening during breaktimes in schools. Our aim was to describe the core barriers and facilitators of adventurous play in English schools. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with a range of school staff across a range of school roles. Data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Four themes were developed: Risk, Valuing and supporting play, Resources and School policy and practices. We also noted that culture existed as an important backdrop to all of these themes. Findings are discussed in relation to school and societal level change that is needed for all children to have opportunities to engage in adventurous play in school, overcoming inequalities in access outside of school.

Item Type	Article
URI	https://centaur.reading.ac.uk/id/eprint/121677
Identification Number/DOI	10.1080/14729679.2025.2486844
Refereed	Yes
Divisions	Life Sciences > School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences > Department of Psychology
Publisher	Taylor & Francis
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