Enabling Environment: Outdoors - Play it safe

Is your nursery garden a winter wonderland - or a winter wasteland? After the opulent colours and evocative smells of autumn, it is easy to slump into a month or two of cosy, warm indoor activities. Yet outdoor play in winter can be exhilarating, and offers opportunities for children to understand more about the seasons and the natural world. Once children are properly togged up (see Part 1, Nursery World 2 December), it is vital that they are able to play safely in a carefully maintained and richly resourced outdoor space.

The Early Years Foundation Stage no longer requires written risk assessments for all outdoor activities - although you should be able to demonstrate that you have studied and assessed potential risks. Nevertheless, it is good discipline to review how children use the outdoor area in winter; it is likely to be very different to the manner and pace of play at other times of year. Mud, rain, snow, wind and ice all affect how adults and children move around a space and how they interact with resources. A written 'winter play plan' will help you create inspiring play experiences and will reassure parents that your setting has considered and planned for a range of likely scenarios.