We envision transforming over 4000 hectares of Scottish school grounds into sustainable, safe havens that foster social connection, play, and engagement with nature, alongside academic growth. The driver for this change is the needs of our children and young people in a rapidly changing world.

This vision requires reimagining and repurposing the outdoor school estate, with significant long-term changes to school grounds and society’s attitude towards them. We are calling on all involved in the design, maintenance and use of school outdoor spaces to join us for a day to immerse themselves in the challenges and opportunities to restore childhood in Scotland.

We are experiencing unprecedented societal and environmental changes, significantly impacting our children. Schools are facing challenges related to mental and physical health, attendance, behaviour and violence, teacher retention, and community coherence. These interrelated issues are destabilising the present and future for our children and young people, risking our shared prosperity and success as a nation.

• A crisis in the overall health and wellbeing of young people.
• Falling attendance rates, with 40% of secondary school students no longer attending regularly.
• 45,000 incidents of violence and abuse in schools over the last year.
• Significant increases in the demand for Additional Support Needs services.
• Teacher shortages and declining teacher motivation.

While the causes of these issues are embedded in society and requiring multiple solutions, schools must be at the heart of our response. As key environments where children spend most of their waking hours, schools represent a significant public resource, with school grounds an immense and undervalued resource. Historically maintained on a ‘lowest cost’ basis, school grounds have been depreciated to a situation where mown grass and tarmac deserts are accepted as appropriate for our children.

By developing school grounds in partnership with communities and through innovative collaborations, we can achieve highly visible and effective transformation. This is not just the physical design and development of grounds; it requires systemic change and innovation to ensure the focus is back on the needs of our children and young people.

Our conference will consider the critical issues faced and explore the ideas and solutions to address them. Together, let us transform Scotland’s school grounds into vibrant, inclusive, and inspiring spaces that restore childhood and secure a brighter future for our young people.

This conference is generously supported by Queen Margaret University and Landscape Institute Scotland, enabling us to minimise costs to attendees.

Supported and hosted by: Queen Margaret University, Landscape Institute, Learning through Landscapes.

Date & Time: 21st March 2025

Timing: 9:15am arrivals, conference takes place 9:45am-4:00pm. Refreshments at 9:30am, 11am, and 2:40pm; lunch 12:40-1:15pm.

Venue: Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh.

Travel: Bus stop on site or Musselburgh Station is 2 minutes, walk, parking is £5 per day on site.

Ticket Costs: £50 Standard, £15 Supported, lunch included.

Accessibility: The site is fully accessible and able to accommodate dietary requirements as needed.

Agenda

9:15am
Arrivals and refreshments

9:45am
Welcome to the day: Dean of Queen Margaret University
Opening Keynote: TBC on behalf of Scottish Government
Response to the Keynote: Carley Sefton, Learning through Landscapes

10:45am
Morning refreshments

11:00am
Session 1 – Catherine Henderson (Place2Be) the systemic challenges around children’s wellbeing
Session 2 – Chris Raven (Wardell Armstrong) and Steve Moizer (Learning through Landscapes) – the design and use of school grounds as a violence reduction measure
Session 3 – TBC, panel discussion – the use of school grounds to build social cohesion and community through play.

12:30pm
Lunch and networking

1:15pm
Session 4 – Patrick Boxall (Queen Margaret University) – school grounds to reduce emotional based school avoidance
Session 5 – TBC – inclusive nature connectedness practice

2:15pm
Afternoon refreshments

2:30pm
Session 6 – Ali Macdonald (Public Health Scotland) – the possibilities and realities of transforming public space for better health, lessons from the NHS

3:00pm
Facilitated plenary –  drawing together our discussions for a policy response

3:45pm
Conference ends