How Ludicology began
Before meeting more than 20 years ago, Ben Tawil and Mike Barclay were already immersed in play and playwork. Ben’s background includes early-years practice, managing two adventure playgrounds, national development work with Play Wales and lecturing in play and playwork in further and higher education. Mike is a qualified playworker, former design engineer and adult trainer whose experience includes out-of-school childcare, staffed play provision and more than a decade leading play sufficiency work for Wrexham County Borough Council.
Their work came together in Wrexham in 2012, when Wales became the first country in the world to legislate specifically in support of children’s opportunities for play through the Play Sufficiency Duty. Mike was managing Wrexham Council’s play service and Ben was leading the playwork degree at Glyndŵr University. Together, they helped develop Wrexham’s first Play Sufficiency Assessment.
That work demonstrated that play sufficiency required much more than counting playgrounds. It meant listening carefully to children, understanding the places and relationships that shape their everyday lives, and helping organisations respond across policy, planning, services and practice. Recognising the wider potential of this approach, Ben and Mike incorporated Ludicology in September 2013.
Shaped by doing play sufficiency
Ludicology’s distinctive approach has developed through more than a decade of applied work within Wales’ pioneering play sufficiency context. We have helped local authorities and communities assess children’s opportunities for play, interpret what the evidence means and develop credible responses. Our work has contributed research methods, organisational-development processes, policy analysis, partnership approaches, spatial methods, professional learning and practical frameworks for turning the principle of sufficiency into action.
We describe this as doing play sufficiency: an ongoing process of research, collective sense-making, action and organisational change. It develops account-ability for how adult decisions affect children’s play and response-ability to act meaningfully on what is found.
Although children’s play remains our central concern, the implications are community-wide. Paying serious attention to children’s time, space and permission for play can reveal wider questions about sociability, belonging, freedom of movement and spatial justice.
Who we are today
Today, Ludicology works across all four nations of the United Kingdom and is increasingly involved in selected international work. We support local authorities, schools, planners, public bodies, charities, community organisations, visitor attractions and other partners through research, organisational and policy development, training, participatory methods, spatial analysis, planning and practical implementation support.
Our projects range from authority-wide and neighbourhood Play Sufficiency Assessments to research with children and communities, policy development, spatial planning and design engagement, play and risk management, professional learning and whole-school improvement through OPAL.
Ludicology is developing as a founder-led, team-delivered organisation. Ben and Mike continue to provide intellectual and strategic leadership while working with an experienced team and trusted collaborators. Across the organisation, our purpose remains clear: to help cultivate the conditions in which more children can play, more of the time.
Explore our approach to children’s play research and consultancy, our training and professional development, and our published work.
Ben and Mike
Ben and Mike bring complementary experience to Ludicology. Ben’s work centres on research, relationships, play theory, playwork, risk management, facilitation and professional learning. Mike’s work centres on strategy, organisational development, project leadership, implementation, spatial planning and design. Together they share responsibility for Ludicology’s direction, innovation, quality and major partnerships.
The relationship is personal as well as professional: Mike is married to Ben’s sister. Outside work, they still spend time together riding bikes and sharing family holidays—which makes their long working relationship considerably easier.
Find out more about what Ludicology does or contact us to begin a conversation.
