Eco Drama’s award-winning Out to Play project has reached an exciting new milestone. We’ve just wrapped up our landmark 100th Out to Play residency, and as the project enters its 11th year, we want to take a moment to reflect and celebrate this huge achievement.
Looking back at how a small, passionate idea has grown over the last decade fills us with so much pride. Out to Play has been a massive part of the Eco Drama journey and our most successful and impactful project.
Our 100th residency took place at Glenboig Primary School, where we worked with a fantastic group of children and staff. It was a particularly meaningful full-circle moment for us because of the school’s Head Teacher, Alexander Thom. Alexander is a long-time supporter of Eco Drama; he first experienced Out to Play as a classroom teacher participating in the sessions back in 2017. Since then, he has gone on to book the project twice more after becoming a depute head and then head teacher at his subsequent schools.
This is how most of our bookings come in – through repeat bookings from teachers and head teachers who have experienced the magic of the programme first-hand. To us, these returning faces are the ultimate testament to the value and lasting impact of what we do.
Headline Achievements Since 2015
To celebrate reaching school number 100, we’ve been looking back at some of the incredible numbers the project has clocked up since 2015:
- Over 11,500 pupils have taken part in our intensive Out to Play residencies.
- 100 primary schools, nurseries, and ASN schools across Glasgow have experienced deep-impact residencies, with thousands of arts-based outdoor learning sessions delivered to date.
- Over 4,000 teachers and educators have participated in our residencies and CPD Workshops, with teachers taking forward an arts-based outdoor learning practice after the residency ends.
- Award-Winning Impact: Out to Play won Glasgow City Council’s Best Environmental Initiative Award.
- Global Reach: Over 3,000 copies of our Resource Packs have been distributed throughout Glasgow, Scotland, and in countries across the world.
- City-Wide Partnerships: We have been commissioned on a long-term basis by Glasgow City Council since 2021, resulting in all 236 nurseries in Glasgow participating in various ways, reaching hundreds of early years practitioners and children.
Head, Heart, and Hands: Our Amazing Drama Artists
Quite simply, Out to Play wouldn’t be the project it is without our Drama Artists. Their skill, creativity, and genuine passion for connecting children with nature through stories is the real driving force of everything we do. They bring a holistic approach to environmental education in urban areas—one that truly engages the head, heart, and hands.
If you need proof of the impact they make, you only have to look at the beautiful pile of handmade thank-you cards and drawings the Glenboig children created for our drama artist, Isabelle Joss!
We want to send a huge thank you to all the artists that have worked on the 100 residencies over the past decade – their creativity and talent has been such an integral part of the project’s impact:
Ben Mali Macfadyen, Sophie Rose McCabe, Sarah Rankin, Dan Serridge, Saffron Gillies, Ronan McMahon, Yas Mawer, Alice Donnelly, Roisin McLinden and Isabelle Joss.
How it All Began
In the autumn of 2014, our Artistic Director, Emily Reid, was gifted a rare opportunity to stay at Sweeney’s Bothy on the Isle of Eigg for a creative development retreat. Emily spent her time immersed in nature, while also pouring over reports and statistics about childhood and the environment.
One particular statistic was startling: studies showed that 75% of UK children spent less time outdoors than prison inmates, with many spending under 16 minutes outside each day.
Coupled with David Attenborough’s urgent calls to action – reminding us that if we have no connection to nature, we won’t want to care for it – we realised we needed to act. There was an urgent need to re-connect children with the natural world, especially in built-up urban areas where children often experience disadvantage and have far less access to green spaces than their more privileged peers.
But how do you connect with nature in a completely concrete playground? That’s where the unique power of the arts comes in. By using imagination, drama, and storytelling, we can connect learners emotionally as well as intellectually. Stories teach us how to notice and appreciate nature exactly where we are, and by shifting from the reality of “What Is” to the creativity of “What If,” children can imagine forests or act as animals without needing green space or special gear. Ultimately, Out to Play uses imagination to help children notice, appreciate, and bring to life the nature right on their urban doorsteps.
Over the past decade, the Out to Play project has embraced and developed a distinct focus within the UK’s outdoor learning landscape by centring its approach on drama and storytelling. These creative tools engage learners emotionally, fostering a deep, memorable connection to their play and learning that leaves a lasting impact.
Words from Our School Communities
Nothing captures the spirit of Out to Play better than the feedback we receive from the wonderful educators and pupils we collaborate with – some of our favourites include:
“I hadn’t realised the power of imagination in outdoor learning.”
“I have gained openness to taking children outside for outdoor learning which will stay with me for the rest of my career.”
“A fantastic way to encourage children to become explorers of the world.”
“This program has made me aware of nature and made me more confident and happy.” P6 pupil
“I loved it because nature is what is inside me. Thank you for everything. It has been a delight.” P4 Pupil
A massive thank you to Glenboig Primary School, head teacher Alexander Thom, all 100 schools we’ve visited so far, and every single teacher, pupil, and artist who has shared this journey with us over the last 11 years. Here’s to the next 100 schools and sustainability of Out to Play!
