Climbing trees, squelching in mud, paddling in ponds or making dens in the woods – people’s memories of playing outside as children are often vivid and, a new poll has found, overwhelmingly positive, even those who remember falling in cowpats.
Almost 90% of UK adults had rosy memories of the excitement and the feeling of freedom that outdoor play had brought them, the survey found. However, almost half of adults now spend less than three hours a week in natural settings such as gardens, parks, fields or woods, according to the survey. For one in 10 it is less than one hour.
The poll of 2,000 people carried out for the Wildlife Trusts found that this contrasted sharply with childhood, when almost two-thirds of people said they had spent more than half their free time outside.
Spending time in nature is known to significantly benefit physical and mental health. Previous research has shown that regular access to green spaces reduces GP visits by 28% and could save the NHS £2bn a year.
The government has committed to ensure everyone has access to a green space within a 15-minute walk of their home, but one in five households currently do not. Access is even worse in deprived areas.
“Being outdoors in nature has so much joy to offer us all – fresh air, sunlight, birdsong and so many proven health benefits,” said Dom Higgins, head of health and education at the Wildlife Trusts. “So it was hard not to be alarmed by the number of people who spend so little time outdoors, but we need to factor in that not everyone has easy access to natural environments.”
“On the flip side,” he said, “town parks featured strongly in happy childhood memories, and this is incredibly reassuring, as our precious urban green spaces can offer both access to nature and a strong sense of community and belonging.” However, spending on parks has plunged in the past decade or so, as council budgets have been stretched.
In the survey, two-thirds of people said that thinking about their childhood memories made them more likely to reconnect with nature.
‘We’re urging people to spend a few minutes recalling a childhood memory of being outside.’ Photograph: Gary Calton/The Observer
Higgins said: “We’re urging people to spend a few minutes recalling a childhood memory of being outside and then to venture outdoors and experience nature once more. Taking a moment to rewild yourself can be as simple as stopping for a few deep breaths at your local park or lying on the ground looking up through the trees to the birds above.”
The Wildlife Trusts’ 30 Days Wild challenge has been taken up by 3 million people in the past decade, with the charity providing free guides and children’s activity packs this year featuring the TV character Bing.
More than three-quarters of children said they wanted to spend more time in nature, according to a 2024 poll for the National Trust. But it found two-thirds of parents were able to take their children to nature spaces only once a week or less, with accessibility the main barrier. A 2016 poll suggested that three-quarters of UK children spent less time outside than people in prison.
Julie Jones-Evans, chair of the Local Government Association’s culture, tourism and sport committee, said parks and green spaces were vital to local communities. However, she said councils had faced financial pressure due to rising demand for legally required services including social care and support for children with special educational needs and disabilities.
“This leaves discretionary services such as parks vulnerable and demonstrates why it is important councils are supported by sufficient and sustainable funding to protect these important services,” Jones-Evans said.
A spokesperson for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said: “This government is making sure that everyone across the country has access to nature. Wherever you live, it is introducing or improving green spaces.” Three new national forests were planned, with the first stretching from the Cotswolds to the Mendips, the spokesperson said, as well as nine new national river walks, one in each region of England.
