Leap-frog for lawyers: Using local policy and law to promote play

Lack of physical activity is considered one major factor in childhood obesity. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 66 percent of adolescents are not moderately physically active for 60 minutes per day, the standard recommended by public health agencies and experts. Studies of younger children present similarly dismal levels of physical activity. Children need to play not only to maintain good health, but also to develop creativity, confidence, and group skills. Researchers have identified a number of barriers to physical activity, including lack of access to safe places to play, decreasing opportunities for unstructured and structured play in schools, and lack of opportunities for safe, active transport around children's neighborhoods.

Public health advocates have developed a number of innovative approaches to remedy these barriers to physical activity. One approach is to use public policy and the law to improve children's environments. In 2007, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation funded the National Policy and Legal Analysis Network to Prevent Childhood Obesity (NPLAN) to provide advocates in communities across the country with model policies that promote healthy eating and active living.

In this session, the presenter will discuss NPLAN's model policies that communities can adopt to provide more opportunities for play and physical activity, including joint use agreements that facilitate after-hours use of school grounds, childcare physical activity standards, and policies that create infrastructure for safe walking and biking. The session will also identify legal resources that address liability in play, a concern often raised by decision makers.