"In the past we have organised various trips to a wide-range of top attractions, and although the foster children enjoyed these visits there wasn't really the opportunity for them to play.

"The ‘Back to Basics' initiative enables children to play without imposed constraints, they are free to express themselves without fear of disturbing or being judged by the public, and they are encouraged to use their imaginations," she added.

Diane Hinton, one of the outreach workers involved in the initiative said: "It may sound extraordinary but the reality is many foster children don't actually know how to play. They may be experts on computer games but when it comes to integrating with others they have no team working skills.

"Part of our ‘Back to Basics' initiative involves activities that we all probably experienced as children, things like making mud pies, blackberry picking, painting even make believe adventures in a field - activities that will make children play together and be creative," she added.

Play has been found to help traumatised children to express their feelings so that they can better understand and deal with past experiences. It is a medium that allows children to reveal their inner thoughts, explore relationships, and tell others about their experiences and their wishes.  

"Children often have difficulty putting into words how they feel or how experiences have affected them", added Ms Keidan Through a planned series of play activities Pathway Care help traumatised children to better understand and deal with their past experiences."