Pupil participation and playground design: listening and responding to children’s views

This paper outlines a small scale research project that attempted to involve primary aged pupils actively in the redesign of their school playground. The project stemmed from concerns raised by school staff regarding the frequency of problematic behaviours during unstructured times, (particularly lunch times), and the decision to redesign the playground was one component of a larger scale research project. This paper provides an account of this process, and an overview of the approach taken to involve children as co-researchers to ensure that their views were not only heard, but that they played a key role in decisions that would affect them. This offers an alternative way in which educational psychologists can address teacher concerns regarding behaviour that attempts to involve and empower young people in the process