Get your kids kitted out at your local outdoor clothes store and give them back their ‘Wild Time’. A collaboration of nearly 400 organisations, including the NHS, the National Trust and playgroups across the country are calling on children everywhere to get outside more and away from their TV and computer screens.

The Wild Network has come to the conclusion that the majority of children have lost touch with nature and what it can offer, and want them to take up activities such as conkers and camping. The argument is that if children swap just thirty minutes of television and computer games for outdoor play then it would increase levels of fitness and alertness and improve children’s overall well-being. Adding thirty minutes adds up to the equivalent of spending three months of their childhood being spent outdoors, if you prefer it reduces the time they spend in front of a careen by 10%.

Recent research by the RSPB has suggested that in the age group of 8-12 year olds less than 20% had a connection to nature. Further to this it was found that children are spending less time outsides, activity levels are falling, and of those who do spend time outside the “roaming range” has been reduced dramatically.

‘Wild Time’ is all about getting kids to play outdoors and spending time assimilating the natural world around them. Whether it’s on the way to or home from school, or at weekends, it’s all about getting outside on your own doorstep and seeing what nature and the great outdoors can offer children, whether in a back garden, local park or green space to discover the sights and sounds of nature. With parents especially becoming concerned at the amount of time children are spending in front of a screen and evidence from the scientific community showing that a decline in active time is not good for the health or happiness of children we all need to get them outside more.

To back this up a new documentary is being launched in cinemas this week which follows one man’s attempts to get his own kids to spend more time outside and experience what he remembers from his own childhood. In addition a range of projects is being launched in January 2014 which will last all year to encourage us to get our kids outdoor more, so why not get a step ahead and visit your outdoor clothes store, get kitted out with the latest bargains and be ready to get the whole family enjoying nature and the great outdoors once again.