The Centre for the Study of Play and Recreation at the University of Greenwich is the first of its kind in the United Kingdom to develop an understanding of the role of children’s play, informal education and activity-based learning throughout the life-cycle. Despite increasing recognition of the significance of play in the development of children and young people, and concerns within the European Union about leisure opportunities for the elderly, no national centre exists in the UK to enable the public, as well as interested professionals, to access information and advice about the theoretical and social underpinning of play and informed practice.

This, centre, located in the Department of Education and Community Studies of the School of Education has expertise in multi-disciplinary approaches to childhood, youth studies and education. It links theory and fieldwork in all aspects of play and recreation, from infancy to old age, across cultures and nations. This approach has been reflected in the research interests and seminars and conferences that we have developed in the past year. The launch of the centre on 12 May 2011 marks the progress we have made towards establishing a lively base for research and practice for academics, practitioners and students who wish to explore ideas related to play and recreation, drawing from the widest possible range of scholarly activity and research.