Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will implement the recommendations of the All-Party Group on a Fit and Healthy Childhood on encouraging play in childhood development and learning in school.

We want all children to lead healthy active lifestyles. Physical activity and play are important throughout childhood and can contribute enormously to the healthy development of children. The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Statutory Framework emphasises this and makes clear that in their early years children learn through play. When inspecting childcare providers, including schools, Ofsted look at how staff are enabling children to play in ways that help them develop and learn. Ofsted’s recent report on Teaching and Play is available to view at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/teaching-and-play-in-the-early-years-a-balancing-act

The EYFS framework can be found here at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/early-years-foundation-stage-framework--2