United Kingdom

Children's Play: Parks and Playgrounds (1820–1900)

In the 1820s, the government was asked to address issues relating to the physical well-being of its people. This was known as the Condition of England debate and focused attention on the need for recreation and parks in towns to create healthy cities. In this period, government was being pressed to take greater responsibility for providing open space in towns. Between 1820 and 1880, upper and middle-class members of society joined open spaces charities to campaign for legislation to protect common land, promote the creation of parks and gardens, and stem the unregulated growth of cities. In this period, many municipal parks and open spaces were constructed or conserved as a result of the work of organizations such as the Commons [Page 740]Preservation Society and the energies of environmental reformers like Octavia Hill.

This wood engraving by French artist Paul Gustave Doré (1832–83), titied Poor Children Playing on Dudley Street, iends some insight into the conditions of poor children within the slums of 19th-century London.

The 1859 Recreation Ground Act was the first piece of modern legislation to recognize the importance of providing open space in an urban environment and the need to protect common land for outdoor leisure activities. In 1867, on her Freshwater Place housing project, Octavia Hill developed a supervised children's playground for her tenants. In 1877, the first recreational playground in England was established at Bur-bury Street, Birmingham. In 1882, the Earl of Meath, as chair of the Metropolitan Public Gardens Association (MPGA), campaigned for provision of small play areas for children in London. His aim was to establish play areas close to children's homes. In 1884, the Disused Burial Grounds Act made achieving this aim easier, as it enabled the opening of small play areas on these sites. By 1895, the MPGA had sponsored 320 successful burial ground projects, with another 60 in progress.

...