Background Information
OPAL is an award-winning, mentor supported school improvement programme that addresses all the areas that schools must plan for if they want to strategically and sustainably improve the quality of their play opportunities. OPAL is the only programme of its kind that has been independently proven to sustainably improve the quality of play in British primary schools.
Its success comes from a series of interrelated actions undertaken with specialist support from an OPAL mentor. This embeds play into the school’s policies and practices and establishes clear guiding principles and strategies for initiating lasting changes at playtimes.
OPAL at Seaham Trinity
Our OPAL Lead is Miss E Aitkin with Mrs A Wilson being Deputy Lead. Mrs L Richardson is our Lead OPAL Play Worker who works with the children over lunchtimes.
As a school, we signed up to the OPAL Primary Programme in 2022 with a view to providing greater opportunities for the children during their free play time at school. Research shows that play contributes to children’s physical and emotional health, well-being, approach to learning and enjoyment of school. Given the importance of play in children’s lives and current concerns about children’s health and opportunity to access time and space to initiate their own play outdoors, there are considerable benefits for children, parents, school
and the wider community from participating in OPAL’s programme.
Benefits
- Behaviour – happy children don’t cause nearly as much trouble as bored children
- Accidents – OPAL schools have up to 80% less reported accidents
- Staff well-being – Supervising happier children leads to happier staff
- SLT time – senior leaders report a dramatic reduction in the time they spend on resolving play conflicts
- Teachers – consistently report more teaching time in afternoon lessons
- Self-regulation – children in OPAL schools learn to self regulate through practice, trust and freedom
- Physical activity – all children, including girls, SEN and non-sporty children are significantly more active
- Mental well-being – Research shows OPAL children are happier and self-reporting improved mental health
- Social and emotional development – Good play in the laboratory of life where relationships are practised
- Links to formal learning – Many OPAL schools report increased creativity, imagination and collaborative skills
- Attendance – children can’t wait to come to OPAL schools because they have such fun
- Parents – we all want our children to be happy. Well informed parents at OPAL schools love it that their children are happier
- Rights – Play is a child’s right as recognised by the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child
- OFSTED – OPAL schools can easily provide evidence on their approach to wellbeing and inclusion
- Risk – OPAL schools report significant improvements in children’s ability to identify and manage risk
