Family planning: new build homes where children can play outside could be key to cutting London's child obesity and creating friendly communities

A family-friendly city is vital for the healthy growth of London and our children. 
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Vicky Richardson21 July 2017

How has it reached the stage where the sight of unsupervised children playing in the street makes us anxious, or — in the case of teenagers — downright scared?

According to a panel of campaigners who recently met at City Hall to advise Mayor Sadiq Khan on creating a more family-friendly capital, children in London are being “battery reared”.

Research reveals that one in seven London families did not visit a green space, such as a park, last year; children under 12 rarely venture out of the house alone, and the capital has the highest rates of childhood obesity in England.

Children’s policies, the campaigners claim, are not a priority. Adrian Voce, director of Policy for Play, says that in the past six years London has seen £400 million cuts to youth centres, a third of youth workers have been made redundant and 80 adventure playgrounds have closed or are threatened with closure.

SPACE TO PLAY

The Greater London Authority planning committee chair Nicky Gavron set out a policy in 2006 for 10 square metres of play space per child on new developments. This was later adopted by Mayor Boris Johnson who launched current planning guidance, Shaping Neighbourhoods: Play and Informal Recreation, in 2012.

Some claim the guidance is being ignored. Gavron is now working on a report on child-friendly neighbourhoods that will contribute to a review of the London Plan in November. Tim Gill, researcher and founder of Rethinking Childhood, says child-friendly cities are not just better for families, they are more attractive, sustainable and economically viable for everyone.

Now play nicely: children playing safely out in the streets is traditional on this Seventies-built estate in Holloway, north London, home to Vicky Richardson and her three daughters
Daniel Lynch

CREATING COMMUNITY

Learning to “rub along” is part of growing up, and having children playing outside and being an accepted part of the city is essential to fostering social cohesion.

Dinah Bornat of ZCD Architects, in E8, has carried out research that shows a relationship between the number of children using outside space and adults’ use of space. Bornat thinks children are the key to generating community life and the pressure for change may come from private housing developers.

“Playing outside is increasingly seen as a saleable asset,” she says. “Buyers are attracted to the places that are going to be nice to live in. Unfortunately, good examples, such as Barking Riverside, are few and far between.”

My own experience, as a mother of three, is that the most sociable neighbourhoods for families date to an era when playing outside was normal. In our street on a Seventies housing estate in Holloway, north London, children play independently all weekend and on long summer evenings.

As a result I’ve got to know my neighbours, and my 10 year-old has developed a passion for football. There is the odd grumpy complaint or broken wing-mirror, but in general, people realise the sight of children playing outside and parents sitting on doorsteps is what makes this a good place to live.

REGENERATION: TOTAL MAKEOVER THAT PRIORITISES SPACE TO PLAY

Ocean Estate, Stepney, E1, by East Thames Housing Group, Bellway Homes, First Base, Wates Living Space and Spitalfields Housing Association (architects: Levitt Bernstein)

Place making: the Ocean Estate in Tower Hamlets features considered planting and family-friendly communal outside space

This was one of London’s most deprived neighbourhoods before work started in 2009 to completely regenerate it with families in mind. Crime was high and many homes were unfit for purpose. The work involved refurbishing 1,200 homes and building 1,000 new ones. The estate is arranged around a series of streets and routes through the buildings, which give priority to pedestrians and cyclists.

Courtyards are overlooked by terraces, and thought has been put into planting and providing places for parents to sit out and watch their children playing.

  • Recommended by Dinah Bornat of ZCD Architects

WHERE TO BUY

Barking Riverside London, Barking, IG11, by Bellway Homes and the Homes & Communities Agency (architects: Sheppard Robson)

From £359,995: three-bedroom flats at family-friendly Barking Riverside

The UK’s largest new housing estate has 1,400 homes in the first phase, with access to outdoor space and communal play areas. Some houses look out on to “home-zone” streets with pedestrian priority.

A three-bedroom Nightjar flat in the Caspian Quarter starts at £359,995, with Help to Buy available.

Reynard Mills, Brentford, TW8, by Notting Hill Sales (architects: bptw)

From £747,000: provisional price of a three-bedroom Reynard Mills house

With a range of new homes in a variety of styles and tenures, Reynard Mills offers flats and family houses designed to help locals on to the housing ladder and redevelop the neighbourhood. There are 195 homes with a mix of tenures and property types, plenty of green space, two play areas and a pedestrian-priority policy. Homes launch for private sale this autumn, with estimated prices from £747,000 for a three-bedroom house. Shared-ownership homes will launch early next year.

Elmington Green, Camberwell SE5, by Bellway Homes

From £419,995: flats at Elmington Green, SE5, with Help to Buy available

Private gardens and a communal children’s play area feature here, where flats in the recently launched second phase start at £419,995 for a one-bedroom home and £499,995 for two bedrooms. Help to Buy is available on selected plots.

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