Following community consultation, Illawarra Play is now a one-stop shop for free events and activities designed to inspire learning and foster development outside the classroom, encouraging kids to explore, play and grow through local experiences. Photo: Healthy Cities Illawarra. Photo: Healthy Cities Illawarra.
Playtime just got a little easier in the Illawarra-Shoalhaven region with the launch of a new, free, play events search tool for parents, guardians and carers of local kids.
Play Illawarra, a go-to community-focused website designed to provide free resources for families and educators across the Illawarra-Shoalhaven, has added a super handy search function for free kids events to run alongside its directory of the region’s 270-plus playgrounds and parks.
Families, teachers and community groups in the Illawarra-Shoalhaven region can now submit and find free activities for kids on the website, which is run by Healthy Cities Illawarra and supported by Wollongong, Shellharbour, Kiama and Shoalhaven councils.
It comes as opportunities for play show a concerning downward trend according to Healthy Cities Illawarra Team Leader Child Health Promotion Michelle Barry.
“We know play is an important part of a child’s development and wellbeing and an inherent biological need for them. In fact, the right for children to play is recognised by the United Nations. But research shows play opportunities are decreasing across the world,” she says.
“On a report card on Australian children’s health and wellbeing, we scored a D on physical activity. So in terms of our physical development, we’re actually going backwards. For instance, children can’t jump as far as they could 30 years ago.
“There are many contributing factors – safety concerns, increased screen time, increases in more formalised, structured activity. We want to advocate using our amazing playgrounds for open-ended play, and outdoor play in particular is of the utmost importance because that’s where we get the benefits of nature that enhance our play.”
Using Play Illawarra’s new events feature, users can browse a wide range of free family-friendly activities listed by community groups, schools and local organisations such as school fetes, picnics and play groups.
Each event includes detailed information and contact details, plus a calendar to help plan activities ahead, and can be easily filtered by age group to find what’s most suitable.
“Children need a minimum of 60 minutes of physical activity each day, which develops not only gross motor skills but also social and emotional intelligence, how to work with others, practical decision-making – an awful lot is learned through play,” Michelle says.
“I think we’re good at recognising the importance of play for children in that zero to five-year age group but as they start schooling, the need remains but the opportunities tend to fall away. Busy parents are balancing work, life and children, so we want to make it easy to access opportunities in their neighbourhoods.
“All the events listed on Play Illawarra are free. We believe play shouldn’t have a cost attached, and from Healthy Cities Illawarra’s perspective, we want to ensure every child has access to enriching play opportunities in our region.”
Illawarra Play will, very fittingly, launch its new event feature with a free community event on the United Nations’ World Children’s Day in North Wollongong this Wednesday 20 November.
Families are invited to join for an afternoon packed with fun activities and discover just how simple it is to find free local events for your next day out.
Bring the whole family and dive into an exciting line-up of activities designed for all ages including imaginative play with Junkyard Rascals’ loose parts set-up, a lively silent disco experience for all ages, interactive photo play for fun memories and delicious smoothies to enjoy.
The Illawarra Play event will run from 3 to 5 pm this Wednesday 20 November at Stuart Park.
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