How important is a big garden for kids?

[dontbringthatbirdinhere]

We've recently found out we're expecting our first child, and are now thinking about moving house to a bigger property.

There's a house for sale in our village which is in a great location for the village, near good schools, very spacious inside but with a small garden (around 6 metre squared but very broken up by landscaping). Houses this size and within our budget are hard to find in this area, but we are happy to consider other areas.

It's 5-10 mins walk from a playing field with playground on one side and a big open field/common on the other.

We hope our next home will be our house for 10 years or more, so just looking for some Mumsnet wisdom on whether you would buy a perfect house with a smallish courtyard garden or whether you think a good sized garden is essential for kids, especially toddlers.

Just x posted with you op, a smallish, secure garden off the dining room is perfect for little dc!

6m x 6m is more than fine. Our entire estate has gardens that big.

I agree with the advice given and hope your new home is everything you wish for.

Obviously it depends on personal preference and life styles.

For us, a big garden was a must. And I'm so glad we made that choice.

It's lovely on days where we just want to stay at home and relax, open the back doors and let the kids go out freely with garden toys, paddling pool, a shaded area under the trees for them to lie down and read/switch/tablet whatever.

It's not absolutely massive, but there's enough room to circle a bike, and run about.

Sometimes I'm utterly exhausted and just don't have it in me to go anywhere and I feel far less guilty knowing they have a decent outdoor space to play.

I grew up in a house with a 100ft garden and loved it but did only use 2/3rds.

But it depends on the child which you won't know until the time they are older. My son didn't like outdoors and still prefers being in. My daughter I think is going to be the opposite. We have a large garden but it's full of shrubs and plants so time will tell what her kind of play outdoors is.

I found when my girls were small, that I needed to get out of the house for my sanity so we usually went to the park and NT places etc even though we had a garden. The garden was good when they had friends over though. So nice but not essential.

Our garden is about 6m by 4m. It'd be nice to have a bigger one but it's not an issue. I think you're right to clear the landscaping to maximise the useable space, we have enough room for nice garden furniture, a gazebo in the summer and an 8ft pool (though it's a squeeze to get to the gate when that's up!)

It helps that we're rural and have ready access to lots of other open spaces so even during lockdown we didn't feel hemmed in.

I think it depends on your family/ house layout.

I was fortunate to grow up with a huge garden. We barely used it once passed early childhood as we tended to play with our friends in the street/inside houses.

None of the rooms in the house opened to the garden easily so we didn’t use it much as a family either to chill or eat in.

We live in a cheaper part of the country, and we love our big garden, we have about an acre (I'm sure someone will be along soon to tell me that isn't big at all).

Our kids thrive on being outside. They have chickens, we grow some of our own fruit and veg, they can ride their bikes on the drive and play football/basket ball. There is also plenty of space for big family BBQs and birthday parties.

We have 4 kids and we foster, the garden is a sanity saver. As PP said, the kids can be happily doing whatever outside and I can get some washing done, or start on dinner, or read a book without worrying about them running off.

It definitely feels like a luxury to not have to get everyone's shoes and coats on and get over the the park every time we feel like burning off energy..

Saying that, my DH is hugely into gardening, so he doesn't resent maintaining it, and there is a lot of maintenance.

BIL and SIL have a very small garden. They spend a lot more time than us doing day trips out to the farm/zoo etc. They are busy every weekend. They seem very happy too. Their girls are content spending time crafting and doing less running around outside. My kids are very high energy and sporty, they need a good chunk of time running around outside each day.

I have a friend who has a big garden and her family hardly ever use it. They don't enjoy gardening and would much rather go to the park or beach.

So on balance I think it depends on the type of lifestyle you want and what you and your kids enjoy doing.

Ours is about 7m x 7m, with a lot of that taken up by patio and raised beds, and has been fine for the DC. As they got older they got more active and there would have been benefits to a larger garden. However, we have squeezed in a small climbing frame (the cube style) and we have enough space for them to use swingball, pogo stick, paddling pool etc. It’s been fine and the park is up the road.

The issue with a small garden for me is more that it puts you very close to your neighbours!!

Ours is important for all the family not just the kids but it was a massive bonus when the kids were little. It was a major tick box when we were looking to move from a terraced with a small garden.

From what you describe, the positives outweigh the negatives, so I'd go for it.

We had a really small garden and have recently moved to one with a huge garden and it’s made a huge difference - BUT I think it is one of those things that you’d miss if you went from big garden to small but not so much the other way round.

Its a real luxury just opening the door and letting the toddler loose

We have never had a big garden , but when DS was little we had a courtyard garden which was big enough for a table and chairs and a paddling pool. Also big enough for him to have one of those plastic cars. But we did have a park over the road. We found that the older they get the less interested they are in the garden . But maybe what you don't have you don't miss.