A safe place to play

For millions of children, living in extreme poverty exposes them to all kinds of dangers, including forced labour and abuse. Not only that, poverty robs children of safe places to play, leaving them at risk of serious injury and harm.

The learning involved in play is vital for thriving in adulthood – children learn cognitive, problem-solving skills through playing; they learn to cooperate with each other and to forge positive emotional attachment in friendships. Play builds confidence and self-esteem… and it’s fun!

Thanks to your support, every Compassion child has a safe place where they can learn, develop and grow through learning in a classroom and through play. Every week for at least 44 weeks of the year, children sponsored through Compassion attend projects run by their local church where they’re known, loved and connected… where they can enjoy playing in an environment that’s safe and secure.

Enjoy these snapshots below, which show how when you sponsor a child, you enable them to thrive and have the freedom to enjoy their childhood.

Around 10.30am, the children at this Compassion project in Rwanda head out for breaktime. They love to dance, sing and play in the playground. 

Like almost every boy born in Brazil, Luís and his brothers have a dream in common: to become football players. This dream almost never comes true, especially for those living in poverty. Luís’s exceptional talent, though, is recognised throughout the community, and his family strives to encourage him and his brothers to keep enjoying the sport they love.

Donations by Compassion supporters enabled the local church to build a playground in a Thai village, providing children with a safer place to play than by the river.

“I’ve never been so happy like this before. I play here every day with my friends and we love playing on a rocking horse. And I wish that we will have more playground rides.” Somdet

Lauri and her friends are taking a break to enjoy playing outside. The motor-skills and fitness involved in hula-hooping shouldn’t be underestimated! Let’s celebrate the value of enabling children and young people to develop holistically, so they can benefit from healthy minds, bodies and spirits.

We couldn’t resist including this photo of one Compassion participant making full use of the swing! Play enables healthy risk-taking which grows confidence and shows children how to push out of their comfort zones, discovering new heights of capability.

These two boys are enjoying a musical break at their Compassion project in Guatemala. Music can unlock wonderful creativity in children and lifts our spirits.

These two girls in Kenya take a break from their project activities to have a snack and play with their friends.

With this many boys all wanting to use the play equipment at their Compassion project in Indonesia, they’re bound to learn some useful negotiation skills.

Remember the game duck, duck, goose? This is the equivalent in Togo!

Our mission at Compassion is to release children from poverty in Jesus’ name. At the heart of everything we do is a relentless passion to empower every child left vulnerable by poverty. 

When you sponsor a child with Compassion, you help provide them with life-changing support, including nutritious food, access to education, health checks and the care of the local church. At their local church, they not only get to learn, they get to play and have fun!  

Today, Compassion partners with more than 8,600 churches in 29 countries to deliver our proven holistic child development programme to more than 2.3 million children and youth.