21/01/2026
The proposals being recommended for approval at Greenwich council’s cabinet meeting next week would see four out of five of Greenwich’s staffed adventure playgrounds closed or downgraded. This is a decision that matters not just locally, but for London as a whole.
At London Play, we are deeply worried, not just by the outcome being proposed but also by the process that has led there .
A consultation has taken place, yet its central message has been ignored: staffed adventure play is not the same as unstaffed provision. Playworkers, trusted adults, inclusive support, safeguarding and independence for older children cannot be replicated by generic, unstaffed spaces, however well designed.
The council’s report highlights falling usage but fails to acknowledge the managed decline caused by years of underinvestment and reduced staffing. This is then used to justify further cuts. That is not evidence-led decision-making.
What makes this even more troubling is the wider impact. If these proposals go ahead, they risk setting a precedent for other boroughs, signalling that staffed adventure play can be quietly dismantled despite clear evidence of its value. This threatens London’s long-held reputation as a city that values children and play and undermines its status as the global capital of adventure play.
All of this comes at the very moment national policy (through the APPG for Play, the Commission on Play and the newly published National Youth Strategy) is recognising the importance of safe spaces, trusted adults and belonging for young people.
Greenwich should be leading this shift, not stepping backwards.
We urge councillors to pause, to listen to children and families, and recognise that removing staffed adventure play is a downgrading of provision, not modernisation.
Children deserve better.
Greenwich Council has confirmed plans to close three of its five staffed adventure playgrounds to save £600,000 per year - despite concerns from police and charities about young people’s safety.
