Adventures in Lollard Street: An Experimental London Playground, 1955–60

Abstract

Abstract This essay situates the emergence of the adventure playground movement in Britain within social and intellectual contexts. It provides a detailed account of the Lollard Adventure Playground, London, which lasted from 1955 to 1960, and describes the general ecology of the playground including indoor activities, the administration of the playground, and its mediation through pamphlets and journalism. It argues that the playground combined a Christian ethos evident in the early playground movement with the growing permissiveness of autonomous play, and shows how adventure playgrounds were a locus for tensions around class and gender.