I have been waiting anxiously for yesterday’s round table with Nick Hurd MP (Conservative, Parliamentary Under –Secretary of State for Charities, Social Enterprise and Volunteering at the Cabinet Office) for the past two months and now we have had the result we had hoped for; Nick has agreed to take a personal interest in the play sector. He has agreed to help open doors for us and make connections. He recognised the cross cutting nature of play and the contribution it could make to the development and resilience of children, but more than this he saw the role of play bringing communities together and raising the wellbeing of families and their children.
We could not have asked for more and we got what we asked for.
Of course he needs the evidence base on which he can argue our case to his colleagues, which we can give him and of course there is no immediate money to offer from the Government, but there are other places where there is money and he offered to help us access them.
But what was it that gave me most pleasure? Well you may have guessed it, knowing me! It was seeing and experiencing the sector speaking with one voice and demonstrating how, when we work together, we are strong. We will make our case and see the benefits, because it is a good one, not next month, but in three months, six months and eighteen months.
To achieve this we must continue to work together and speak with one voice. This does not mean not having differing views or conflicting and competing needs, it is those that make the sector rich and diverse, indeed, how playful would we be without diversity, risk and debate?
So as always my plea is this, please can we have as much diversity, debate and disagreement as we like, but please, please can we continue to speak with one voice when it really matters, as we did yesterday and it worked!
grumpysutcliffe 