Reading play between the lines: recess, risk and outdoor school life in Australian public education policy

School play, recess and outdoor environments are central to children’s school lives but are rarely governed as a coherent policy domain. This study examines how Australian state and territory public education systems make outdoor school life visible, governable and actionable. Using qualitative policy document analysis, directed content analysis and framework synthesis, it analysed 60 publicly available policies, procedures, guidelines, frameworks, standards and design documents. Findings show strong governance of risk, supervision, climate exposure, facilities and adult responsibility, but weaker practical specification of play sufficiency, student agency, outdoor belonging and play-supportive adult capability. Seven themes were identified: Recess as supervised time–space; Outdoor environments between enabling design and risk control; Play dispersed across adjacent policy agendas; Adult responsibilities are detailed but fragmented; Climate and environmental conditions shape access to play; Inclusion and wellbeing are unevenly translated into play; and Risk-benefit judgement as a policy leverage point. The analysis shows how school play is shaped by policy across several domains and provides a practical vocabulary for examining how supervision, risk, design, climate, wellbeing, inclusion and student voice enable or constrain play.