Playing on The Road

In the picture, a group of children is playing football on a residential road between parked cars. I do not think it is safe, because a car could come round the corner at any moment and the parked vehicles block both the driver's view and the children's. The ball could also roll under a car and a child might run after it without looking. What I also noticed is that there are no adults nearby watching, so there is nobody to warn them if a vehicle approaches.

My friends and I usually play at the void deck of my block after school, because there is shelter and it is right beside our homes. Once our ball hit a neighbour's bicycle and knocked it over, and although nothing was damaged, an uncle came out and told us to be careful. After that we started playing at the small court behind the block instead, which is further but much better because nothing gets in the way. It was a fair reminder that the void deck is shared with everyone.

I feel a few things can help. Firstly, more small play areas within housing estates would help, because children play near home and will not walk far to reach a proper field. Secondly, existing spaces such as void decks and courts could be better maintained and lit in the evenings, since many are unused simply because they feel unwelcoming. Most importantly, children need somewhere they are allowed to be noisy, because if every space has rules against ball games, they end up on the road, which is the most dangerous option of all.