Re: Playing Out

For my friends and I, our playgrounds were bomb sites. The local 'rec' had been taken over by barrage balloons and AA guns. We had the river Lea, and the barges, and the common with a pond for fishing for tiddlers.

Re: Playing Out

I chose not to have children as I knew I carried the genes of `the evil one`

I played outside,like most us now well over 50. Would I have allowed my children to get up to what I did?

I never had to answer that one. Walking around alone,sneaking into ruined houses,apple scrumping------

Re: Playing Out

I remember playing hopscotch sometimes, and walking to my friends house a lot. My friend and I used to go swimming every Saturday morning at the local pool. I also used to go apple scrumping with my brother and his mates.
My son played outside sometimes, he used to ride his little 3 wheeler bike around, but always stayed nearby. When he got older he joined a cycling club, and also enjoyed swimming a lot too.

Re: Playing Out

my sis and I were allowed to play out whenever we wanted to ,we lived in deep countryside with fields of straw bales for building castles in and tunnels and dens,sometimes we had a major collapse and would be buried under piles of straw bales but we just scrambled out....can you imagine the fuss nowadays if that happened,we would all need counselling.

Happy days when we were children having picnics and going to the coast .
When I had my two sons I still lived in the countryside and allowed them all the freedoms I had as a child,they would be out tree climbing and making dens.
I cant imagine what it must be like for todays children with all the technology of games consoles eating up their time and mobile fones
I dont think an easy place to grow up in now.

Re: Playing Out

I played a lot outdoors, with friends or on my own, I had a bike & would cycle to our local park, swing across the river, catch caddis fly lava in the stream & get them to make their homes out of small pretty beads. Childhood was simpler then.
My kids when they were younger, had some freedom too, they played with their friends in the close opposite, in & out of each others houses, on their bikes in the park, but with adult supervision for that.
Things aren't so good or as free for todays children. It's very sad how the times have changed.

Re: Playing Out

I was lucky enough to grow up on the outskirts of London and was free to roam nearby parks, we paddled in the brook, went fishing, collected sweet chestnuts and blackberries..

When my children were born the area had gone downhil to the point that we were told not to let the children walk to school on their own because of the risks..
So, OH and I moved somewhere so that our children could have the same wonderful freedoms as we enjoyed.
They camped in fields, rode the neigbours ponies bareback, went fishing and swum in nearby lakes.
I am so grateful we were able to give them that childhood.