Child's Play: Reimagining Primary School Grounds

Over recent years, increasing attention has been given to the role that school grounds play in children’s learning, wellbeing and understanding of the natural world. For those responsible for the care of outdoor spaces in UK primary schools, maintenance is no longer viewed solely as a practical necessity, but as an opportunity to support ecology, education and community connection.

Experience drawn from working as a contractor, alongside insights gained as a parent and former pupil (in the dim and distant past!), has shaped an approach that treats school grounds as far more than a cost centre for grounds maintenance. Instead, well-managed outdoor spaces are seen as assets that can enrich learning and foster a lifelong relationship with nature.

At the heart of this thinking is the belief that the foundations of growth and learning are closely linked to connection with the natural environment. Opportunities to “play to learn”, or to learn through play, allow children to immerse themselves in nature at an early stage and better understand their place within it. Observation, quiet reflection and unstructured play in green spaces can have a calming effect on both children and adults, helping them to thrive in environments that feel safe, engaging and enjoyable.

As naturalist and broadcaster Michaela Strachan has observed through programmes such as Winterwatch and Springwatch, time spent noticing and understanding wildlife can be transformative.

This perspective echoes the understanding held by many Indigenous cultures worldwide, which emphasise living in harmony with nature and treading lightly on the land. Applying these principles to school grounds means recognising that maintenance involves more than cutting grass or trimming hedges. It is about creating spaces for exploration and adventure, where pupils and staff can connect with their surroundings and learn together.

Routine grounds maintenance, when carried out thoughtfully by the right team, can align with a school’s educational aims, local ecology and the wider community. Over the past twelve months, Really Green Smart have been engaged in a number of projects that have focused on enhancing and redeveloping outdoor spaces, including the creation of wildflower meadow mazes, woodland classrooms and the recovery of areas previously lost to poor or lapsed maintenance.

These initiatives have involved engagement with the OPAL (Outdoor Play and Learning) scheme and partnerships with organisations such as Derbyshire Wildlife Trust and Forest Schools. Work has been undertaken in collaboration with school principals, governors and senior leadership teams, ensuring that outdoor developments support both curriculum delivery and environmental stewardship.

As a family-run business, there remains a strong interest in emerging research into local, national and global ecosystems. Looking ahead to spring 2026, particular attention is being paid to the concept of the “Wood Wide Web”, the complex underground networks through which trees and fungi communicate, and what this reveals about the interconnected health of woodlands and the planet. This growing area of understanding is seen as having significant potential for educational engagement, including opportunities to link outdoor spaces with lesson content, particularly for older pupils.

The idea underpinning all of this work is simple: with the right approach, school grounds can become an investment in education, wellbeing and environmental responsibility, rather than merely an ongoing expense.

As the Jackson 5 once sang, learning can be “as easy as 1-2-3”, while songwriter Gil Scott-Heron reminded audiences of the responsibility owed to future generations: “We’ve got to do something… to save the children… ‘cause soon it’s going to be their turn to try and save the world.”

In the context of school grounds, these sentiments underline the importance of creating outdoor environments that inspire curiosity, care and connection, laying the groundwork for both learning and stewardship long into the future.