Parents identify safety as the biggest barrier to children's independent playIn this study, Dr. Jenny Veitch and colleagues interviewed 78 parents from five primary schools in Melbourne, Australia to investigate children's free-play and their perceptions about what influences children's free-play. The interviews provided information regarding individual, social, and physical influences on children's play. In their analysis, Dr. Veitch and colleagues found that children primarily engaged in free-play in their yard at home, with a smaller percentage of parents reporting that their child often played in the street and public open spaces. The most important influence on a child's mobility was safety, with 94% of parents stating that safety was their biggest concern. Parents' safety concerns centered around strangers, teenagers and gangs, and road traffic. Other influences on mobility included a child's independence (for example, older children had greater independence than younger children); a child's attitude towards free-play (for example, parents often described their children as being
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