Community involvement is increasingly important in creating opportunities for children to play. 

Play is a way of bringing communities together, overcoming barriers and providing a focus for different agencies to work more closely with local people to improve the quality of life for children, parents and families. 

What is on offer? 

Play England provides a range of support and resources to help local communities to take control of the spaces where their children play. 

This includes advice and support for local community groups and organisations to encourage volunteering and local involvement in play through volunteering schemes, community organisation and social enterprise. 

We have developed tools to help transform local play provision and encourage community involvement:

-  Creating Playful Communities - a report on the lessons learned from the programme
- A series of eight briefing papers
- Three films  about community-led play provision
- A dedicated website www.playfulcommunities.org.uk with good practice guidance on how to develop and sustain play in your neighbourhood. 

We also provide bespoke training and consultancy to local authorities, public health bodies and voluntary organisations to enable them to support greater community involvement in play. We offer full day and half day workshops on specific issues - managing risk, design, maintenance, supporting volunteers, managing local play provision - as well as advice on local play strategies, developing local play partnerships and play audits based on Play England's Local Play Indicators.

Who can use the service?

Any community group can access our online resources.

We also provide advice, training and guidance for all those with a stake in engaging the local community including those who plan, design, build and manage public spaces and play provision  - local authorities, local health and well being boards, volunteering and play leads, children's services, planning, transport, housing and the police.