Removing ‘No Ball Games’ signs across the capital is one of the challenges for the next Mayor of London to be included in a manifesto from London Sport.
Ahead of the 2024 London Mayoral Elections, the charity’s Manifesto for a Healthier and More Active City includes five key policy areas aimed at tackling the capital’s on-going inactivity crisis.
It calls for a greater focus on informal sport and physical activity, including a dedicated space for ball games, within the planning and design of major developments.
The challenges set out for all Mayoral candidates are designed to break the link between inactivity and inequality – a link which has been emboldened by the pandemic and the current cost-of-living crisis.
The charity has released research indicating half of the five to 16 age group in the capital – 620,000 children – are not exercising enough. The study also revealed so-called “activity gaps” between sexes, income groups and ethnicities.
“These include promoting walking and wheeling to school, protecting swimming pools and other sports facilities, and removing ‘No Ball Game’ signs to create more spaces for children to be active,” London Sport said in a statement.
See the London Sport manifesto here.
London Play has the perfect antidote to ‘No Ball Games’. Our ‘Play Priority Area’ signs mimic the ubiquitous play prevention signs in their design, but do the opposite!