'Toy guns are good for little boys'

Boys of nursery and playgroup age should be allowed to play with toy guns, a leading academic said today.

Penny Holland from the University of North London said preventing such play could impede boys' development and damage their self-esteem.

Her findings undermine years of "political correctness" in nursery schools and playgroups, where toy guns, action-hero games and rough-and-tumble play are almost universally banned.

She claims to show this zero tolerance does not turn children away from violence, but is more likely to leave them de-motivated and marginalised. Allowing boys to be boys, developing their imagination through play they enjoy, was the best way to "socialise" potentially violent children and speed their development, she said.

Ms Holland, a former early years teacher and now a lecturer in early years development, said: "The theory has been that playing with violent toys encourages violence and that stopping it will help children grow up to be non-violent adults. I carried out research in 20 nurseries where this zero tolerance policy has been dropped. Contrary to some people's expectations, World War Three did not break out.

"When zero tolerance was lifted, there was more play violence. But there is a difference between this and aggressive behaviour, and that did not increase."

Children who had previously been stopped from playing with guns and other "violent" toys were noticeably more involved in the wider activities in the nursery when the ban was lifted and their overall development improved. "Boys in particular who have been marginalised by their behaviour tend to come in from the cold," said Ms Holland.

"I still believe nurseries should tell children that guns are violent and dangerous. But the important lesson about conflict resolution is thinking how the other person feels, and that comes from encouraging imagination not suppressing it."

Gillian Ladd, head of Beckett House Nursery School in Islington, said the ban there would remain in place. "I understand the point about not stifling children's creativity. But with something like guns, it should be explained that we don't want them in our environment."

Is she right?