OPAL

We began our OPAL program in July 2024 to improve opportunities for physical activity, socialisation, cooperation, coordination, resilience, creativity, imagination and enjoyment through improved play.

The OPAL outdoor play and learning programme is the result of 17 years testing and development in over 500 schools and is now used in Canada, France and New Zealand as well as across the UK. Work has started to adapt the programme for schools in Slovakia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Austria. In 2018 Opal won first prize in the EU funded award for the best active school’s programme in Europe and two United Kingdom National play work awards.

OPAL is based on the idea that as well as learning through good teaching, your children also learn when they play, and as 20% of their time in school is playtime, we want to make sure that this amount of time (equivalent to 1.4 years of primary school) is as good as possible.

One reason the school is carrying out this program is that childhood has changed and many children no longer get their play needs met out of school.

• Average screen time per day five hours.
• Average outdoor play time per week five hours.
• Percentage of United Kingdom children who only play outdoor with other children at school 56%.

There are many proven benefits for school which carry out the OPAL programme. They usually include: more enjoyment of school, less teaching time lost to disputes between children, less accidents and greatly improved behaviour.

Play is not messing about. It is the process evolution has come up with to enable children to learn all of the things that cannot be taught, while also feeling like it is fun.

To learn more about OPAL please follow the link below.

https://outdoorplayandlearning.org.uk/the-opal-primary-programme

OPAL Strives to provide up-to-date and legally robust guidance to schools to help them provide the best balance of risks and benefits, as advocated by the HSE, DfE, OFSTED and ROSPA.

We have taken advice from the top experts in the country in order to support schools to provide suitable risk and challenge to their children.

The result is our R.A.P.I.D system: