Hebburn Lakes Primary School, South Tyneside

Before OPAL, playtimes at Hebburn Lakes were frequently unstimulating and poorly resourced, leaving many pupils bored and unable to engage meaningfully. This led to widespread low-level conflict and regular play fighting on the yard, which in turn generated a high number of first‑aid incidents and damaged social relationships.

The cumulative effect of these breaktime problems reached into lessons: teachers routinely spent significant parts of the afternoon managing behaviour-related fallout, often using up to 30 minutes of teaching time to resolve disputes, calm dysregulated pupils and rebuild classroom routines.

This disproportionately affected our disadvantaged and SEND pupils, who lost crucial learning time and missed opportunities to practise social skills and self‑regulation in purposeful play.

Our OPAL journey 

We began our OPAL (Outdoor Play and Learning) journey to create a more resilient, inclusive playtime culture that meets the wide and varied needs of pupils at Hebburn Lakes Primary.

By designing purposeful, well‑resourced outdoor play opportunities we aimed to reduce minor injuries and first‑aid incidents, cut down on play‑related conflicts and unsafe play fighting, and support pupils to manage dysregulation.

OPAL also provides structured chances for children to learn to play cooperatively, build friendships, and practise responsibility, resilience and respect—developing social and emotional skills that improve behaviour, wellbeing and readiness to learn across the school.

The impact of improving playtimes

OPAL has created calmer, more regulated breaktimes where children are able to practise self-soothing and emotion‑management away from the classroom. Staff report fewer escalations and pupils return to lessons more settled and ready to learn, which supports overall wellbeing across year groups—particularly for pupils who previously struggled with dysregulation.

There is clear improvement in both fine‑ and gross‑motor skills across the school. Reception and KS1 pupils continue to consolidate early‑years foundational skills outdoors, while older pupils are developing coordination, balance and strength through negotiated play and risk‑managed physical challenges.

Pupils are increasingly solving their own disagreements and negotiating play without adult intervention. OPAL has encouraged collaborative play between year groups, which has broadened friendship networks and improved pupils’ ability to cooperate, share and take turns.

Children are using the outdoor setting to practise creativity, imagination and practical problem solving (for example building dens, designing games and organising roles). These activities are building transferable skills—communication, planning and leadership—that feed directly into classroom learning.

Opportunities to take small, supported risks and to persist with challenges have noticeably increased resilience. Pupils are more willing to try things, recover from setbacks and demonstrate responsibility for themselves and others during breaktimes.

Overall, OPAL has shifted playtime from unstructured downtime to purposeful, developmentally rich practice that strengthens wellbeing, physical competence, social skills and readiness to learn—benefits that are particularly valuable given our high levels of disadvantage and SEND.

A total transformation

OPAL has transformed breaktimes into purposeful, inclusive learning spaces: children are consistently engrossed in play, take greater responsibility for equipment and each other, and form friendships across year groups.

The improved play culture has reduced the volume of behaviour and medical incidents at breaktimes, so staff spend less time resolving fallouts and teachers are reclaiming valuable teaching minutes in the afternoon. Most staff are now fully invested in the approach and behaviour at lunchtime is noticeably calmer and more respectful.

For our pupils with SEND and those who are disadvantaged, OPAL provides low‑threat opportunities to practise social‑emotional skills, self‑regulation and fine/gross motor development in authentic contexts. The result is a quieter, safer and more connected school community where wellbeing and readiness to learn are improved for a large proportion of our cohort. OPAL is more than play; it is an integral part of our personal development curriculum. 

Better play has led to better behaviour

Since implementing OPAL we have seen a sustained reduction in behaviour incidents at lunchtimes, which has freed up valuable teaching time in the afternoons. Pupils are more able to self‑regulate and resolve low‑level disputes independently, with many taking on peer‑mediator or leadership roles at play that reduce adult interventions.

Staff report fewer first‑aid and play‑related incidents, calmer transitions back to class and improved concentration during lessons. The improvement is particularly noticeable among disadvantaged pupils and those with SEND, who now have more predictable, scaffolded opportunities to practise social skills and manage emotions in a safe environment.

Overall, behaviour is more positive and restorative, allowing teachers to focus on learning rather than repeatedly repairing playtime fallout.

A marked reduction in playtime accidents

Since introducing OPAL we have seen a clear and sustained fall in playtime accidents and low‑level incidents. “Wingeries” and play‑fighting have reduced significantly, with far fewer children needing first‑aid treatment at breaktimes and fewer behaviour‑related follow‑ups in the afternoon.

The yard is calmer and better supervised, and staff report that incidents are more quickly de‑escalated or resolved by pupils themselves. This has reduced pressure on midday supervisors and teachers, recovered teaching time, and created a safer, more positive play environment for our disadvantaged and SEND pupils in particular. 

Staff have positively engaged with play

Staff at Hebburn Lakes are positively engaged with OPAL: they recognise the difference purposeful play makes to pupils’ behaviour, wellbeing and readiness to learn, and many now actively supervise, resource and coach play.

Where resistance exists it’s practical rather than principled: these staff want clearer routines, predictable expectations and concise training so they feel confident. Continuing targeted CPD, brief coaching visits and sharing short evidence of impact (lost teaching minutes reclaimed, reductions in first‑aid incidents, pupil leadership examples) has helped to bring more colleagues on board. 

Providing an inclusive play offer 

At Hebburn Lakes every child has equitable access to the outdoor play offer regardless of age, ability or gender. We achieve this by:

• Universal access to resources and zones — equipment and spaces are deliberately non‑exclusive so children of all year groups and needs can choose what suits them.
• Thoughtful adaptation and differentiation — resources, task demands and roles are adjusted on the spot (and pre‑planned where necessary) so pupils with SEND or lower confidence can join in safely and meaningfully.
• Skilled adult facilitation — midday supervisors, teaching assistants and class staff are trained to scaffold interactions, model play skills, teach turn‑taking and support pupils who need help with regulation or social communication.
• Pupil leadership and peer support — play leaders and buddy systems actively include quieter pupils and connect children across year groups, widening friendship networks and reducing exclusion from activities.
• A risk‑benefit approach to play — we accept managed risk to build resilience and physical confidence, while clear routines and safety expectations protect wellbeing.
• Close liaison with SENDCo and families — individual needs and reasonable adjustments are recorded and shared so planned interventions (quiet zones, visual cues, small‑group playtimes) are available when required.
• Monitoring and responsive improvement — we track participation, incidents and feedback (staff, pupils and parents) and use this to refine resources, supervision and targeted support so the offer remains genuinely inclusive for our disadvantaged and complex‑needs cohorts.
• Quieter space for our resource base children but which still allows them to access many OPAL areas.

Improved parent engagement

Since OPAL was introduced, parents are more engaged and visible in school life, parents report positive changes in their children’s social confidence, and communication about playtime routines and expectations is clearer and more consistent. We now have more productive conversations at drop‑off/pick‑up about children’s play, quicker information‑sharing when a child is dysregulated, and stronger partnership working to support reintegration after incidents. This improved engagement has helped reinforce behaviour expectations, reduced repeat playtime issues, and supported pupils’ wellbeing and readiness to learn — particularly for our disadvantaged and SEND families. 

Our favourite way to play

A firm favourite has been our tyre area — especially the Year 5 & 6 “Wheelie Wednesdays.” The tyres are highly versatile: pupils use them for imaginative construction, group games, den‑building and physical challenges, which keeps play fresh and engages children across year groups.

The space supports wide-ranging development: gross‑motor confidence, problem‑solving, cooperative planning and risk‑managed resilience. It also creates natural leadership opportunities (older pupils organising activities, younger pupils joining in), so it reinforces peer mentoring, inclusion and practical social skills — outcomes that reflect the broader aims of our OPAL approach.

Angela Docherty, Assistant Headteacher, Hebburn Lakes Primary School, South Tyneside