How We Verify Our Data

Accuracy is the foundation of Places to Play. This page explains exactly where our information comes from and how we verify it, so you can trust what you read here.

Our data sources

• OS Open Greenspace (Ordnance Survey) — the official, openly licensed (OGL) national dataset of parks and play spaces in Great Britain. It provides our authoritative master list, including names and geographic locations.
• OpenStreetMap — community mapping data used to confirm play areas and add detail such as equipment, surface and access, under its open licence.
• Each place's own official website — the local council for public parks, or the operator for soft play and commercial venues — for opening times, facilities and prices.
• Reputable references (e.g. official local-authority pages) used only to corroborate facts.

What we verify for each place

• The correct name and location, so you reach the right place (we take care with same-named parks in different towns).
• What's in the play area and which ages it suits, where stated.
• Whether it's free or paid, and for paid venues the opening hours and prices from the official site (with the date we checked).
• Practical facilities — parking, toilets, cafés and accessibility — where we can confirm them.
• Whether a site has closed, moved or changed.

Our editorial rules

• We never invent. Every fact comes from a checkable source. If something can't be verified, we leave it out rather than guess.
• Unique content. Each page is written from that place's real details — not spun from a template.
• Cross-checked. Key facts are confirmed against more than one source where possible, and every listing shows the sources we used and the date we last verified it.

Prices & opening hours

For paid venues such as soft play centres, prices and opening hours change and can vary in school holidays. We show the figures from the official site with an "as of" date, and always recommend confirming on the venue's own website before you travel.

Report a correction

If you manage a place or notice an error, we want to know. Contact us through our contact page and we'll review and fix it promptly. Reader corrections are a valued part of how we keep the directory accurate.