News from the Play Australia team...

2023 is fast moving to a close and we cannot help but be surprised with all the activity that has happened this year!

In news from the team, we are bidding farewell to Kieran this week as he takes on a new adventure. More on that next week as we do not want to steal the limelight from his new employer! Needless to say, we are delighted for his next step and wish him well!

The year has been a fast paced one and 2024 looks set to be even busier!

Last week we hosted Professor Sergio Pellis who presented on the brain science around play. The members that attended have given really positive feedback. A big thanks to Maribyrnong Council for their assistance with a venue. We will be hearing more from Sergio in 2024.

Our free member webinars for next year are being finalized and we are really excited about the range and depth of our members presenting. If you are interested in presenting, we have availability from May onwards. Email Robyn, ceo@playaustralia.org.au.

We will be offering a new suite of courses in 2024, including Playwork training.

We will also be welcoming new team members in 2024, once our key projects are finalized, as we have submitted a number of grant applications that if approved will be game changers for Play.

Stay tuned for more to come and have a great week!

Robyn, Kieran, Joanne, and Peter.

Our Annual General Meeting will be held on Tuesday 19 December 2023 at 4pm on Zoom. All members are invited to attend.

Agenda

• Approval of Minutes of 2022 AGM
• Approval of Financial Reports 2022-2023
• CEO Report
• Election and Ratification of Board members 2023-2024

We have three Board positions up for election. If you have recent governance experience and/or financial expertise, and would like to nominate, please contact Robyn for nomination forms and to discuss the role. All Board members must undergo probity checks. Representation on the Board of Play Australia is as an individual (not your organisation).

The Board meets monthly at present, and we also have subcommittee meetings.

Stand Back and Avoid Saying ‘be careful!’: How to Help Your Child Take Risks at the Park

If you have not read this great article on risk in The Conversation, here it is! 

A Pocketful of Podcasts!

Meerlinga in WA, launched a series of podcasts for Children’s Week 2023 and they are free to listen to, including one with Play Australia’s own Robyn Monro Miller!

ARUP | Playful cities design guide: play for anyone, anywhere

The Playful Cities Design Guide is a resource that complements the Playful Cities Toolkit and provides practical and inspirational ideas to help urban practitioners and city authorities to imagine and embed small-scale play elements for children, youths, and adults in city design and planning. 

New Film: This is Why Play is so Important

Playful Childhoods is a Play Wales campaign The short film features children of all ages, who tell us what play means to them. It celebrates play and highlights why play it's so important to children’s development, health, wellbeing, and happiness.

Our new self-paced learning modules on Playspace Development and Maintenance have had great reviews! Thank you to members who have shared their opinions on LinkedIn.

A reminder that you have 12 months to work through the 7-hour course and it is a great PD to start in the slower months of January.

Our Local Government members will have already received another early release product, our new online module on planning for inclusion in play spaces. If you are in Local Government and not received the email, contact us at info@playaustralia.org.au so we can add you to the LG@play list!

National Play, Playing and Playwork Conference March 8-10 2024

Marc Armitage is bringing his popular Malarkey conference back to Melbourne in March.

QCAN – the Queensland Peak Body for OSHC Saturday 23 March

Always advocating for play, the QCAN conference is sure to have some play on the agenda.

Do you know of an event coming up in 2024? Email info@playaustralia.org.au