“Understanding Play and Risk Management”
“Understanding Play and Risk Management” is a full-day training course designed specifically for those responsible for or working directly with playing children, including teachers, childcare professionals, playworkers, youth workers, foster carers, social workers, parents and service managers.
The course combines aspects from “Play: The Sense in the Nonsense” and “Scary Fun: Managing Risk in Children’s Play” to provide participants with the most up-to-date theory and practice on children’s pay and the management of risk in children’s play.
Centred around presentation, group discussion, activities and simulations the “Understanding Play and Risk Management” considers:
- The role and function of play in childhood and child development,
- The unique characteristics of play and how in combination these contribute to physical and emotional well-being and resilience
- Risk management strategy, policy and practice
- Routine risk-benefit assessment and dynamic risk-benefit assessment.
Facilitated by Ben Tawil from Ludicology the content of presentations is based on the latest evidence and always delivered in an accessible and informative manner, ensuring support for those at the early point in their career and those more experienced. The course is intended to be an enjoyable and rewarding experience for everyone involved, enabling participants to better enable play and importantly children’s desire to play with elements of risk and uncertainty.
Learning Objectives
- Understand the unique features of play, including personal control, intrinsic motivation, flexibility and variability, pretence and the creation of uncertainty)
- Understand how the unique features of play contribute to children’s expression and refinement of emotion regulation, stress response, peer and place attachment, learning and creativity, positive affect, wellbeing and resilience.
- Participants will gain the skills needed to create and implement effective risk management policies and practices that balance the need for safety with the benefits of risky play. They will learn how to shift from traditional alphanumeric risk assessment approaches to narrative risk-benefit approaches.
- Participants will be able to confidently apply Risk-Benefit Assessment (RBA) and Dynamic Risk-Benefit Assessment (DRBA) techniques in their work settings. They will practice these assessments during the course and learn how to integrate them into daily practice to support children’s engagement in beneficial and safe enough play.
- Participants will learn how to effectively advocate for the inclusion of risky play opportunities within their organizations and communities. They will be equipped with information and strategies to communicate the benefits of risky play to stakeholders and to address common concerns and barriers.
Course Outcome
Participants will have a solid understanding of the features of play, the role play serves in childhood and how to create the conditions to effectively support and encourage it, fostering environments that promote quality opportunities for play, supporting the emotional, physical and social well-being of the children in their care.
Participants will have increased confidence in their skills to use Risk-Benefit Assessment (RBA) and Dynamic Risk-Benefit Assessment (DRBA) tools to enable them to make informed decisions that allow children to explore, take risks, and learn in a safe enough yet challenging environment and to confidently develop, implement, and advocate for risk management policies and practices that balance safety with the benefits of play.
Course Costs
The current cost of the “Understanding Play and Risk Management” programme is £1800 plus VAT and travel, inclusive of all training materials. The course will be delivered in person as a full-day programme (9 am – 3 pm) although the timings are flexible. The maximum number of participants is 24. Each participant will be provided with a digital copy of the course content and associated reading materials.
This course can also be delivered as two half-day or twilight sessions, please see “Play – the Sense in the Nonsense” and “Scary Fun: Managing Risk in Children’s Play” for further details.
If you would like to know more or are interested in commissioning this training programme, please contact info@ludicology.com
Useful Resources
Take a Risk on Play Part Three
Summary – Playing and being well: A review of recent research into children’s play…
A focused half-day option is also available through Scary Fun: Managing Risk in Children’s Play.