NCB Now: Big society needs play at its heart

The importance of advancing children's wellbeing and improving their life chances is even greater as the challenges for them and their families mount up. There is growing evidence of the long-term economic benefits of play provision - preventing health problems and improving educational attainment - not to mention its role in community cohesion.

Nevertheless, impossibly difficult spending decisions are likely to mean contraction, at least in the short term. We need therefore to look at the wider public realm. It is increasingly recognised that the places and spaces where children live have an enormous impact on the quality of their lives, their health and wellbeing, and their opportunities to learn. Government can help, even as budgets are cut, by ensuring that the policy framework for the new localism puts children's needs at the heart of the vision for sustainable communities. This starts with the playable public spaces that families are crying out for.