Daisy TURNBULL - “Mum taught me to be strong”

In an era of helicopter parenting, Daisy Turnbull says risk-taking can set our children free. She and mum Lucy share childhood stories with Juliet Rieden and discuss the key to developing resilience in tomorrow’s adults.

- Juliet Rieden

Alice is out with Mummy and Gaga, scampering barefoot around the impressive Wild Play adventure garden in Sydney’s Centennial Park. The four-year-old is pretending to be a scary monster creeping up behind her elders as she runs along a slatted wood and rope bridge and then disappears into the bushes giggling. Alice is both the centre of attention and mistress of her own destiny as she dashes around the woodlands. It’s a joyous scene, albeit set up for The Weekly’s ‘three generations of feisty Turnbull women’ photoshoot, that underlines the power of good old-fashioned outdoor fun.

Daisy Turnbull thinks our children need more of this sort of play – climbing trees, building camps, bush walking and scraping knees, and there’s no question Alice is having a ball as she throws herself into the garden’s bamboo forest and banksia tunnels, and squeals with delight when unannounced the artesian water play area spurts jets of water high into the air.

It may all sound very Enid Blyton, but Daisy knows what she’s talking about. As a secondary school teacher and mum of two she has witnessed how an era of helicopter parenting and mother guilt has resulted in a lack of confidence and independent spirit in our children, which at worst can develop into anxiety and mental health issues. Daisy teaches history, business studies and religion in an independent girls’ school and also recently became the director of wellbeing, which is sort of how she ended up writing the book we are here to discuss – 50 Risks To Take With Your Kids.