Abstract
In 2020, at the start of the March 2020 COVID-19 lockdown in the United Kingdom, a study was undertaken with 23 participants exploring the impact this may have on playwork and playwork practice. That project started an 18-month longitudinal study between March 2020 and September 2022. COVID-19 was five years ago, and this final study aimed to explore the current impact on playwork and playwork practice. In total, 8 interviews were undertaken, and the results constructed 4 main themes regarding the continuing effects of COVID-19: 1) Community Engagement, 2) Emotional Regulation, 3) Outdoors, and 4) Health and Safety. The findings are discussed in relation to other play-related studies and considerations of why playwork continues to have a ‘keyworking role’, for example, from a children’s rights perspective.
Recommended Citation
King, P. (2026). Impact of COVID-19 on playwork: Five years on. International Journal of Playwork Practice, 6(1). Retrieved from https://scholarworks.bgsu.edu/ijpp/vol6/iss1/4
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