Rejected petition Include play in the statutory national curriculum framework

We want the government to recognise play and playful pedagogy in the statutory national curriculum for primary education.
A reform of accountability measures to enable schools to embed play-based learning, support child development, well-being and skills essential for today’s society.

More details

Play supports mental health, executive functioning, SEND needs, physical health, creativity, and learning. (See “Everything to Play For” Report)
Schools are currently under pressure to prioritise data over child development and childhood is being forgotten.
Embedding play helps address current crises, gives all children a joyful, meaningful education they deserve, alongside allowing the development of skills which are needed for the future (OECD and WEF).

This petition was rejected

Why was this petition rejected?

There’s already a petition about this issue. We cannot accept a new petition when we already have one about a very similar issue.

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You may wish to sign this petition which calls for the same action:

Make Play and Continuous Provision statutory in England's Key Stage 1 Curriculum
https://petition.parliament.uk/petitions/729440

We only reject petitions that don’t meet the petition standards.

Date submitted 21 June 2025
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