Signs of neglect : play in a relict landscape

Abstract

The title of this Dissertation relates to the observation that children worldwide delight in play opportunities on neglected pieces of land: those pieces of rough ground, wasteland, and abandonment that occur in many urban areas. This is a relict landscape in the sense that each piece has been left behind, temporarily forgotten after former use: they are the remnants, they are relictual. In that they are prized by those who like to wander in these wastes, they are also precious relics. Conversely, de-relict land is how council authorities, as representatives of adult society, tend to view the same examples of neglect. There is, therefore, a tension between those who appreciate these neglected relics but have little power in planning and design decisions affecting them, and the guardians of norms that would have neglect rehabilitated, reclaimed, and renewed. Convention would also have all signs of neglect purged from public open spaces where mown grass and lollipop trees predominate.

The literature relating to child development and environment is critically reviewed with special reference to behavioural studies of children exploring the world outside their home territories and beyond adult supervision. The behaviours of unsupervised children at play resemble those of wandering exploration more than sedentary absorption, the indeterminate journeys undertaken being more important than defined destinations. These findings are discussed in relation to adult behaviours in terrains vagues and other places of neglect. Based on the literature, a case is made for assessing the suitability of open spaces for children's play using criteria that can be evaluated by an adult observer.

Publicly available school zoning information was used to select three 400 ha study areas in Christchurch, New Zealand differing in the socioeconomic status of residents (centred on the suburbs of Merivale, Addington, and Hornby). Using the newly developed criteria for assessing play suitability, the open spaces designated as parks and reserves by council authorities were evaluated for the kinds of play opportunities children prefer. Each of the three study areas was also surveyed to identify neglected areas of open space, whether in private or public ownership. These were similarly evaluated against the same play suitability criteria used for designated parks and reserves. Designated areas were generally of negligible suitability for play; newly identified areas often had high or excellent play suitability.

These findings are discussed in the context of crime prevention through environmental design and the conventional appearance of parks. Suggestions are made for the conservation and mapping of existing areas of neglect, and for how signs of neglect might be designed so that neglected places might gain acceptance in urban areas.