Opal’s vision and The Coppice’s aim is that every child in every school has an amazing hour of high-quality play every day.

What is OPAL?

OPAL is a programme that improves opportunities for physical activity, socialisation, co-operation, coordination, resilience, creativity, imagination and enjoyment through improved play.

It is based on the idea that, as well as learning through good teaching, your child will continue to learn as they play. 20% of their time in school is playtime, so we want to make sure that this amount of time (equivalent to 1.4 years of primary school) is as good as possible.

Our Opal Journey

We started our OPAL journey in Sept 2024 and will be working with our OPAL mentor over three years to make our lunchtime play as good as it can be

Why are we following the OPAL programme?

One reason we have embarked on this programme is that childhood has changed, as many children no longer get their play needs met out of school. Children spend more time on screens and less time outdoors, so we want to make their time outdoors as enjoyable as possible.

There are many proven benefits for schools which follow the OPAL Programme. They usually include: more enjoyment of school, less teaching time lost to disputes between children, fewer accidents and improved behaviour.

OPAL at The Coppice

All children in the school (from Year 1to Year 6) have the freedom to play where they choose within the school grounds (outside). Reception classes start in one area and are carefully introduced to the different areas.

Our OPAL lunchtimes are fully supervised by our Play team, who are trained in OPAL play and ensure the children are receiving the best play experiences possible.

A variety of zones, stations, equipment, activities and areas are available for the children to choose from

 Equipment and Zones currently include:

Messy cafe Imaginary play in the messy cafe kitchen.	Large construction Use a selection of crates, reels, planks, and materials to build dens and make your own imaginative creations.	Soft Landing Balance, roll and jump on protective mats
MUGA (Ball area) Grab a ball and show off your skills in the multi-use games area	Box Ball Get with your friends and play the popular ball game.	Hoops and skipping Have fun with the hoops and ropes.
Chalking area In the designated chalking areas, show off your artistic skills.	Disco Zone Stand on the raised area, have a dance, sing a song and shake your pom poms!	Digging pit A set area where children can grab a spade and do some digging (Wellies must be worn on wet days!)
Wheeled play Ride scooters around the track or take a friend for a ride on a wheeled chair	Team building games Use the equipment to create your own fun games.	Mini beast / play exploring Grab a magnifying glass and become an explorer
Quiet Zone Away from the hustle and bustle, read a book, have a chat and enjoy some quiet time	Crafty corner Located in the quiet zone, join in with planned crafty activities.	Board games Play cards or challenge a friend to a board game (Draughts/dominoes/ludo)
Climbing Climbing domes are scattered around the field, as well as a selection of trees that the children can climb.	Dressing Up den Be whatever or whoever you want to be!	Performing zone Use the stage to show off your acting and performing skills
Small World A range of construction: train sets, cars and Lego to keep little hands busy.	Water World Use pipes, tubes and containers to move water around, creating your own waterways.	Gravel pit Play on the gravel with diggers and dinosaurs.
Obstacle course Use the equipment to create your own physical fun and enjoy team-building games.	Sand play (coming Summer 2026)	Adventure Zone Work your way around the trim trail, climbing, balancing and testing your strength and agility.

If you would like to know more about OPAL at The Coppice, please click on the link to read our OPAL policy.