A study launched this week by Pesticide Action Network UK (PAN UK) has found residues of the weedkiller glyphosate and its toxic breakdown product AMPA in English playgrounds raising serious concerns about children’s exposure to potentially harmful chemicals in public spaces.
The charity tested samples of soil and plant material and swabbed children’s play equipment in thirteen playgrounds across three English counties and two London boroughs. None of the playgrounds were particularly close to agricultural fields suggesting that the contamination detected is likely to originate from the widespread use of glyphosate by UK councils to remove unwanted plants in public spaces.
Nick Mole from PAN UK said, “It is deeply concerning to find a Highly Hazardous Pesticide like glyphosate present in the very places where our children play. UK glyphosate use has skyrocketed in recent years, as has the evidence linking this chemical to serious health conditions. We all know that young children tend to put their fingers and other items in their mouths so finding glyphosate residues in playgrounds, including on play equipment such as swings and slides, is particularly worrying.”
Glyphosate has been linked repeatedly to a range of chronic diseases, most notably cancer. Children are more vulnerable than adults to the health impacts of pesticides since their brains and bodies are still in development and less able to cope with toxins. A 2023 study from UC Berkeley School of Public Health found that childhood exposure to glyphosate and AMPA threatens to increase the risk of developing serious disease in later life such as liver cancer diabetes and cardiovascular disease.
While roughly 45 per cent of UK councils are taking action to end or reduce their pesticide use the majority continue to use glyphosate in public spaces such as parks and pavements usually for cosmetic purposes. Councils reported using a total of 354 tonnes of pesticides in 2024 roughly equivalent to the weight of 23 double decker buses. According to official data glyphosate based products make up 96 per cent of all pesticide active substances applied by local councils.
Professor Michael Antoniou a specialist in Molecular Genetics and Toxicology at Kings College London and UK contributor to the recently published Global Glyphosate Study said “Our studies have shown that exposure to glyphosate herbicides is a significant risk factor for the development of a range of serious health conditions including fatty liver and kidney disease and most worryingly a wide range of cancers including leukaemias. The assertion by government regulators that glyphosate is ‘safe’ does not stand up to latest scientific scrutiny which shows that a ‘safe’ dose of glyphosate is at present unknown. Thus all efforts should be made to reduce glyphosate herbicide use in both agricultural and urban settings and to eliminate unnecessary routes of exposure especially for children.”
Of the five areas in which playgrounds were tested the London Borough of Hackney was the only location where neither glyphosate nor its breakdown product AMPA were found. Hackney Council went pesticide free in all its parks and green spaces and on housing estates in 2021. They have also introduced a range of other measures which have significantly decreased the amount of pesticides used in other settings across the borough.
Hackney Councillor Alastair Binnie Lubbock said “We are very proud to be protecting the health of our residents council workers and the natural environment by hugely reducing the amount of glyphosate we use and declaring areas such as green spaces to be entirely pesticide free. This study shows that parents and children can spend time in Hackney’s playgrounds without having to worry about toxic pesticides. We urge other UK councils to tackle their own pesticide use. While it may seem daunting at first it’s actually not that hard to do can save money in the long run and is hugely popular with residents.”
PAN UK is urging all UK councils to adopt its three year phase out plan to join the fifty UK councils that have already gone pesticide free. Campaigners are also calling for the UK Northern Irish Scottish and Welsh governments to follow the examples of France Denmark and the Netherlands by introducing nationwide bans on pesticide use in public spaces. Any ban would need to be accompanied by a package of support for councils to help them adopt safe and sustainable non chemical alternatives.
There is currently a Bill going through parliament tabled by Sian Berry MP which would end pesticide use by local councils in England. Chemicals Minister Emma Hardy has acknowledged the need for local councils to reduce their pesticide use but is yet to take any concrete action. The UK government is set to launch a major public consultation on whether to reapprove glyphosate in early 2026 with a final decision due by mid December. Children’s health advocates will be calling for a complete ban on the use of glyphosate in public spaces including playgrounds.
Locally, Havering Climate Coalition has called on Havering Council and Havering Housing to ban the spraying of glyphosate in residential areas including in or near children’s play areas and to ban glyphosate herbicides in all public spaces starting with playgrounds and green spaces. Campaigners say recent studies make clear the significant risk of harm to health including cancers and that awareness of the dangers of using these toxic chemicals is thankfully growing.
Havering Climate Coalition members Ruth Kettle Frisby and Gina Must, told the Havering Daily:
“Havering Climate Coalition is proud to include Pesticide Free Havering who are continually campaigning for reduced pesticides and alternative methods to be used of which there are many.
We are pleased to see that Havering Council has committed to no spraying in our green spaces and playgrounds with the exception of direct treatment to invasive plant species such as Japanese Knotweed.
We also keenly await the results of trials of alternative methods carried out on our pavements this year.
Unfortunately the same cannot be said of Havering Housing who instruct the use of pesticides on the land they own which sadly can include some of our children’s playgrounds.
The public use of glyphosate herbicides represents an urgent health crisis and Havering Housing and Havering Council must act now to protect its youngest and most vulnerable residents.
It’s incumbent upon Havering Housing and Havering Housing to act on the evidence and protect Havering children’s health.”
A spokesperson for Havering Council told the Havering Daily
“We use a herbicide containing glyphosate on hard surfaces on our public highways three or four times a year in order to tackle weeds and to keep our footpaths clean and tidy.
“Glyphosate has been approved for safe usage in the UK and the guidelines show there are no warnings against its usage however we are aware of its public perception and have been trialling alternative types of treatment.”
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