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Overprotective Parents Prevent Sense of Adventure

While nearly all of parents think it’s important that their children grow up with a sense of adventure, more than half have admitted to refusing to encourage their youngsters to play outdoors.
Celebrities, Leisure, Lifestyle - 28 March 2011   Download IconContent available for download:  
Audio | Interview with Alison Hammond and Dr Harry Witchel| Login to Download

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  News Hooks:

A nation of over-protective parents are holding back the next generation of adventurous Brits – as more than half (54%) admit they refuse to encourage their youngsters to play outdoors in case they get hurt. Mums and dads said that as well as injury, they worried about the welfare of their children.

Nearly all of parents (94%) think it is important that children grow up with a sense of adventure – but while most of them grew up climbing trees, camping out in the garden, bike riding and rope swinging, a third of parents admit to never doing anything adventurous with their kids - and over half (53%) accept that their offspring are less daring than they were at a similar age.

It won’t come as a surprise to parents to hear that the youth of today are more likely to spend their free-time playing computer games than any other activity. Nearly half (44%) say it’s their favourite hobby, compared to just one in ten who go exploring and even less who play ‘make believe’ and climb trees. Today’s children pointed to fictional characters including Harry Potter (84%) and Buzz Lightyear (79%) as recognisable ‘adventurers’ – over legendary explorers Ellen MacArthur (7%) and Sir Ranulph Fiennes (6%).

. Introduction:

Despite growing up climbing trees and camping in the garden, it seems we have become a nation of over-protective parents holding back our children. New research has revealed that the majority of British kids only experience ‘adventure’ sat in front of the television and playing computer games – with fictional characters like Harry Potter more recognisable than real ‘adventurers’ such as Ellen MacArthur and Sir Ranulph Fiennes.

As we step into the spring, how important it is that our kids experience real-life, outdoor adventure?

Joining us to discuss this further is Dr Harry Witchel, a psychobiologist and reality TV star Alison Hammond - a mum who’s experienced adventure in the jungle on I'm a Celebrity Get Me Outta Here.

. Suggested Questions:

What can you tell us about kids’ sense of adventure in our area?

Why is it so important our children grow up with a sense of adventure?

Why do you think parents are so concerned about letting their children play outdoors?

Have things changed so much since your childhood?

How can we give our children a sense of adventure but keep peace of mind intact?

Where can we find out more information?