Summer is here and Covid-19 restrictions are easing across the four nations of the UK. While it is a time of jubilation for many, there have been several news stories in recent months about people’s anxieties about up-coming end of restrictions. 

Arguably, parents arguably face a more immediate return to normal life than others. Many people have the freedom to reintegrate themselves into a sense of normality at their own pace. However, children of a certain age will be desperate to get back to doing all the activities they’ve missed out on, effectively leaving parents to get back to normal whether they feel ready or not. 

Most of us have spent more time outdoors than usual since the start of the pandemic, but the end of lockdown doesn’t mean that has to as well. If anything, it gives you the opportunity to shake off the boundaries of the pandemic and embrace the possibilities of outdoor play.

The nurture of nature

For decades, numerous academics have studied the benefits of children spending time outdoors, with some like Richard Louv’s Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder even suggesting spending time outdoors is in fact a necessity for children and adults.

It is widely accepted that children who spend more time outside are happier, more attentive, more confident, less anxious and more intelligent than children who spend more time inside, particularly those who spend the majority of their time indoors glued to electronic devices. 

Outdoor play leads to some very specific benefits:

  • Confidence

Outdoor play is a lot less structured and restricted than indoor play. When they are playing outdoors, children have more control over where they go and what they do. Not being limited by the structures of indoor play helps them to explore and grow in confidence.

  • Responsibility

Playing outdoors means playing amongst living things, from flowers to trees and bugs to birds. Exploring the outdoors helps children to understand their responsibilities towards the natural world and the impact they have.

  • Stress and tiredness

The outdoors have been proven to have a positive effect on mental health. In fact, some studies have shown that even a photo of nature can improve someone’s mental wellbeing. It all centres on the concept of Attention Restoration Theory, which suggests that the near-constant requirement to ignore distractions in urban environments stresses and fatigues the minds, whereas green environments allow the mind to relax and take everything in.

  • Creativity

Without the structure of indoor play, the outdoor world almost forces children to use their creativity, to think freely and invent their own games. It also empowers them to improve their problem solving skills and resourcefulness.

  • Get moving

Prior to the pandemic, this was arguably considered to be the most important aspect of outdoor play, given rising obesity levels among children in the UK over the past decade. 

The outdoors encourages children to have a far more active lifestyle, improving physical health, but also helps to develop gross motor skills as they start to move their bodies and use muscles in ways they’re not used to.

Not just a walk in the park

A lot of us have spent much of the past 15 months walking around our local park. Thankfully, easing lockdown restrictions means that outdoor play isn’t just more of the same for children itching to do something different. 

Trying an entirely new activity, getting back to some old favourites or doing them in a new part of the country is a great way to satisfy your child’s excitement to get back to normal while not forcing yourself into a state of anxiety. 

Here are three of our favourite outdoor activities for the family:

  • Adventure centres

Adventure centres offer all the benefits of outdoor play in a safe, structured setting. Whether it’s climbing walls, high ropes courses, canoeing, bushcraft, or a whole host of others, these centres usually offer something for the whole family. 

The brilliant thing is that one centre might be a source of activities over and over again. One visit might be totally consumed by a high ropes course, leaving plenty to do in future.

  • Hiking

So much more than the same walk in the park you’ve done over and over again, hiking is a fantastic way to explore the outdoors as a family. It’s easy for everyone to join in with, it’s free (providing you have suitable footwear and clothing) and it’s flexible depending on the age of your child. 

There are so many stunning hiking spots all over the UK and plenty of resources to help you find family-friendly routes, sometimes including child-focused activities like nature hunts. 
If your child is obsessed with mobile devices, you could combine your hike with Geocaching, which requires participants to use their device’s GPS to lead them to weird and wonderful places.

  • Camping under (and looking at!) the stars

We all need a break at the best of times, and especially after the year we’ve had. But with overseas travel still severely restricted and lingering anxieties about staying in a hotel, camping might be the ideal alternative for you. 

Whether it’s for a week-long staycation in a new part of the country or a few nights nearby, camping is a great way to relax with your family, while getting all the benefits of being in nature. 

Without the distractions of technology and our everyday lives, camping is a brilliant way for families to reconnect, and offers the ideal base for a host of outdoor play during your stay. 
Camping also offers the perfect opportunity to do some stargazing. Whether you lay on the forest floor in a sleeping bag or take a kids telescope with you, stargazing is a wonderful way to spend time in nature and bond with your child.

The ending of lockdown restrictions doesn’t mean life has to go back to normal. Rather than the end of something, it can be the start of a new, active, outdoor lifestyle for you and your child.

Author bio
Jonathan Davies is a dad to three-year-old Raife and (nearly) one-year old Eden, and a writer for DaddiLife – the parenting website for modern-day dads and a community of fathers across the UK and US. Jon is incredibly passionate about the outdoors and the benefits it has on children and is always looking for new outdoor activities to try out with Raife and Eden.