Outdoor Play and Learning (OPAL)
At Bank View School, we believe that it is important that life is more than a virtual/digital world. We are passionate about your physical wellbeing and will therefore provide opportunities for our pupils to develop resilience and manage risk and elements of danger, through exploring and having fun outdoors.
We began our OPAL journey in September 2022, and it has been an amazing experience ever since! OPAL has completely revitalised our playtimes, making play an integral part of the school day. We are thrilled to announce that in June 2024, we were awarded the OPAL Platinum Award!
The Platinum Award is highly prestigious, representing the highest recognition an OPAL-practicing school can achieve. Our OPAL mentor, Ben, was deeply impressed by our children and the remarkable impact OPAL has had on them.
We would like to take this opportunity to extend our heartfelt thanks to everyone involved. The staff have been outstanding, embracing significant changes to the school day with enthusiasm and adaptability. Our parents have been fantastic, whether by donating loose parts for play or handling the occasional muddy uniform. Your continued support means the world to us. And, of course, we must celebrate the children. Their transformation has been truly impressive, and they have navigated the many changes with resilience and joy.
The difference OPAL has made is phenomenal. Our children are happier, more sociable, and more resilient. With the freedom and responsibility that comes with OPAL playtime, behavioural incidents have dramatically reduced, and children return to the classroom ready to learn. This journey has truly been a remarkable one for everyone involved.
What is OPAL?
OPAL (Outdoor Play and Learning) is an award-winning, mentor-supported school improvement programme designed to enhance the quality of play opportunities for children. It addresses all the critical areas schools need to plan for to strategically and sustainably improve playtime. OPAL is unique in that it is the only programme independently proven to sustainably enhance the quality of play in British primary schools. Bank View School completed the OPAL mentorship programme from September 2022 to June 2024 and continues to implement it independently.
OPAL at playtimes
Our ethos at Bank View School emphasizes the development of the whole child, placing social interaction at the heart of our activities. We embraced the OPAL project to rebalance and enrich children’s interactions with their peers, helping them make up for lost social time. Developing social skills is crucial for providing a positive school experience, and with OPAL, our children now enjoy a more purposeful, enjoyable, and rewarding lunchtime experience. This fulfilment permeates their entire day, making them more receptive to learning both inside and outside the classroom. We firmly believe that happy children learn best.
‘At Bank View, we recognise that in play children may need to make a noise, get dirty, make a mess and sometimes be out of the direct gaze of adults. We believe that the role of adults is to support the play process. We aim for children to have the opportunity for ‘free play’ within the school grounds.’
Through OPAL we have:
- Happier children
- Children who are ready to learn when they return to class
- More active, fit, and energetic children
- A fully inclusive playtime offer
- Increased opportunities for creativity and decision-making
- Development of independence and resilience
- Enhanced social skills and collaboration among children
…. and most importantly fun!
Don’t throw it away!
We are continually developing our play offer as we work through the OPAL programme and are always looking for any spare items you have that we could use.
Items like these are always appreciated:
- Suitcases of any size and type – anything on wheels/castors
- Plastic milk crates and wooden pallets
- Briefcases, especially hard-cased ones
- Road signs and cones
- Kitchen pots, pans, baking trays, worktables, wooden spoons, chopping boards
- Tools like spades, trowels, brooms and buckets
- Tubes of various sizes and various materials
- Nets and ropes
- Keyboards/torches/laptops/calculators that are no longer working
- Fabric (large sheets/brightly coloured fabric/saris)
- Foam sheets/body boards
- Cable drums
- Guttering
- Noodles (the type you use in the swimming pool!)
- Pegs (to help to set up dens)
Thank you to everyone who has donated items so far.
The links below give further information
Opal in the primary department
What your child needs for OPAL
We want the children to be out every day, in all weathers, in all parts of our grounds. Please make sure they have wellies and a warm coat in school. Waterproof trousers are a good idea too if they love getting mucky.
Assemblies
Every few weeks we have a play assembly where we gather the children together to ensure that there is communication between adults and children about play. This forms a crucial part of the OPAL process it allows us to celebrate play, gain the children’s ideas about play development, discuss safety and risk management and then continue to innovate our playtimes.
The Golden Welly Award
The Golden Welly Award celebrates children and their exceptional play. Children can earn this award for using their initiative during play, outstanding behavior, being a kind friend, or showing good sportsmanship. Each week, a member of the OPAL play team selects a child to receive the award, which is then presented with a special mention on Seesaw.
Staff
Our staff have undergone extensive training in both Playwork and risk assessment to ensure the best possible playtimes for our children.
After school club
Following the success of OPAL during lunch and break times, we now offer an OPAL after-school club. This club provides a fantastic opportunity for children to build resilience and confidence in a smaller group setting. The after-school club also plays a key role in maintaining and developing our play areas.
