Unlock the doorstep revolution in your district!
Want to find a way to unlock doorstep play?
Play Street Pioneers is resident-led model designed to activate doorstep play in the neighborhoods that need it most. By overcoming administrative and confidence barriers this innovative programme gives residents the support and local accountability to unlock doorstep play for hundreds of children in one neighbourhood. Street Space is now looking for local authority partners for 2026; work with us to embed street play across a neighbourhood and cultivate grassroots community leaders used to flexing their ‘civic muscle’.
From policy to play
We’re on the look out for local authorities who have a play street policy in place and now want to enable residents in neighbourhoods, where street play isn’t already happening, to unlock the power of playing out. Many local authorities have a Play Street policy sitting on a shelf, but the "paperwork barrier" and "neighbour-anxiety" mean adoption is often limited to affluent areas.
By commissioning a Play Street Pioneers programme in your district you will be supporting 12 local residents to connect with a cohort of locally based peers who are curious about running a play street where they live. Over a six month period each member of the cohort will be supported on the journey from starting to think about a play street to running their first one successfully. Many Pioneers will go on to run regular play streets and share their knowledge with others locally.. Play Street Pioneers is the catalyst to kickstart a doorstep play revolution.
This tried and tested programme is uniquely tailored to support grassroots community leadership (and create the local cheerleaders) to enable people to unlock the confidence needed to talk to neighbours, overcome the necessary steps to apply for permission from the relevant council body, promote and hold a play street. No small feat if this isn’t something that has ever happened on your street or in your area.
A transformative experience for Pioneers who’ve taken in the programme so far, one Pioneer told us:
“There’s no way I’d be doing this without the support of this programme” 2025 Pioneer
Why it works? The "systemic bridge"
We don't just tell people to run a play street; we build the ‘civic muscle’ required to make it happen. Our model solves the three biggest hurdles for residents:
The Bureaucracy Gap: We demystify the temporary road closure application process using step by step tools.
The Confidence Gap: We provide a peer cohort so no one feels like the lone voice calling for play on their street and support people getting started introducing the idea to their neighbours.
The Accountability Gap: We move "I’ve been meaning to do that" into "We’re doing this in two weeks on Saturday."
Programme at a glance:
By commissioning a Play Street Pioneers cohort, your district receives support for:
A Local Host: A paid, highly-networked community leader who anchors the program
Pioneer Cohort: 12 residents supported over 6 months to move from "curious" to "closing the road."
A Digital Village: A specialised WhatsApp ecosystem for real-time troubleshooting, resource and skill sharing and peer to peer cheerleading!
The Play Kit: Physical resources delivered to the doorstep to lower the barrier to entry.
The programme uniquely combines practical support with the power of local accountability. Many people who joined our pilot programme in Bradford District, 2025 had been talking about wanting to run a play street for years, but it was only with the support and accountability from being a Play Street Pioneer that made it happen.
“I need the accountability that something like Play Street Pioneers provides, I’ve wanted to do a play street for ages” 2025 Pioneer
What’s the impact?
We’re looking for local authorities to initially make contributions starting from £5000 towards the next phase of testing Play Street Pioneers in diverse neighbourhoods across the country. By supporting Play Street Pioneers you will be able to nominate a neighbourhood or ward in your district to benefit from the programme.
We transform a one-off event into a sustainable neighbourhood habit. Based on our 2025 Bradford pilot our impact included:
20+ Play Streets unlocked in a single summer
Reaching 200+ children, reclaiming streets for play on their doorstep
Connecting 130+ adults with their neighbours supporting their children to play out
Building a legacy of 12 civic leaders (pioneers) who are highly likely to continue running play streets and go on to leading additional neighbourhood DIO (do it ourselves) projects
“We’ve run a couple of sessions now and it really feels as though children have grown in confidence over the summer. Suddenly regular street play has become the norm for them and what a wonderful feeling that is. To think we’ve been part of shaping their childhood memories is a very special feeling” 2025 Pioneer
Ready to activate your streets?
We are looking for visionary local authorities to partner with us during 2026. Find out more and sign up for updates on the developing programme (including expressing your interest in being a pilot, funded neighbourhood if this opportunity becomes available) by getting in touch here.
