About This Guide
Fairy Plus is designed to encourage children to get outside, explore their neighbourhood, and be active — all wonderful things. Like any outdoor activity combined with a mobile device, it comes with considerations that parents and guardians should be aware of before handing it to their child.
This guide outlines the intended use of the app, foreseeable risks, and practical tips to help keep your child safe and make the experience fun for the whole family.
How the App Is Intended to Be Used
Fairy Plus is meant to be played outdoors, on foot, in familiar and safe public spaces such as:
- Your street or immediate neighbourhood
- Local parks and nature trails
- Footpaths, green spaces, and open public areas
A child opens the app, walks around, and receives real-time alerts when they are near a virtual fairy or collectible treat. The closer they get, the more likely an encounter becomes. The goal is to befriend fairies by offering them the right treats — treats that are earned by completing daily real-world challenges approved by a parent via PIN.
The app is designed as a shared experience between child and parent, not a solo activity to be conducted unsupervised.
Foreseeable Risks and How to Mitigate Them
1. Distracted Walking
The risk: Children focused on a screen may not notice hazards in their path — kerbs, roads, cyclists, uneven ground, other pedestrians, or obstacles.
Tips to mitigate:
- Establish a clear rule before play begins: stop walking before looking at the screen
- Teach your child to treat the phone like a map — glance at it, then put it down and move
- Walk with younger children and model safe phone behaviour yourself
- Avoid using the app near busy roads or car parks
- Consider playing in enclosed green spaces where road traffic is not a concern
2. Wandering Into Unsafe Areas
The risk: A fairy or treat may appear to be located near a boundary your child shouldn't cross — a stranger's garden, a building site, a busy road, or private property.
Tips to mitigate:
- Before your first play session, walk the intended play area with your child and establish clear boundaries ("we only go as far as the park gate")
- Remind your child that no fairy or treat is worth going somewhere unsafe — they can always come back another time
- If a fairy is located somewhere inaccessible, it is fine to simply leave it. Fairies will still be there on future walks
- Younger children should always be accompanied by an adult
3. Stranger Danger
The risk: Children playing an outdoor app may appear to be wandering alone or staring at a device, which could attract unwanted attention. They may also interact with strangers who notice them playing.
Tips to mitigate:
- Supervise younger children directly; older children should play with a friend or sibling rather than alone
- Ensure your child knows not to tell strangers what app they are using or show their screen
- Teach your child what to do if they feel uncomfortable — come home immediately, call you, or go to a trusted adult nearby
- Set boundaries about how far from home your child is allowed to play without you present
4. Traffic and Road Crossings
The risk: The excitement of following a trail can cause children to rush across roads without proper attention.
Tips to mitigate:
- Make it a rule that the phone goes in a pocket at every road crossing, no exceptions
- Practise the stop-look-listen routine with younger children before starting a play session
- Plan routes that minimise road crossings where possible
- Younger children should always cross roads with an adult
5. Weather and Physical Overexertion
The risk: Children can become absorbed in gameplay and not notice they are too cold, too hot, or too tired. They may also push themselves to walk further than is appropriate for their age or fitness.
Tips to mitigate:
- Set a time limit or distance limit before heading out ("we're playing for 30 minutes and then coming home")
- Ensure your child is dressed appropriately for the weather
- Bring water on longer walks
- Do not play during severe weather — lightning, heavy rain, extreme heat, or icy conditions
- Check in with your child regularly about how they are feeling
6. Screen Time and Dependency
The risk: The reward loop of earning treats and befriending fairies is engaging by design. Some children may become frustrated if they cannot play, or may want to play for longer than is healthy.
Tips to mitigate:
- Use the daily challenge system as a natural limit — once today's challenges are done, there is a natural pause point
- Set clear expectations about when and how long Fairy Plus can be played each day
- Frame the app as a reward for going outside rather than an entitlement
- If your child shows signs of distress when the app is taken away, consider a structured break
7. Personal Device Security
The risk: Children may share the parental PIN with friends or attempt to guess it to approve their own challenges without adult supervision.
Tips to mitigate:
- Choose a PIN your child does not already know (avoid obvious sequences like 1234 or birth years)
- Enter the PIN discreetly, out of your child's line of sight
- Change the PIN if you believe it has been compromised (available in Settings)
- Remind your child that the PIN is for parents only — challenge approval is meant to be a moment you share together
8. Data and Device Safety
The risk: A child using a device outdoors risks dropping or damaging it. In rare cases, visible device use in public could attract opportunistic theft.
Tips to mitigate:
- Use a protective case and consider a wrist or neck strap for younger children
- Ensure the device has a lock screen PIN separate from the Fairy Plus parental PIN
- Teach your child to be aware of their surroundings and not to wave the device around unnecessarily
- Consider using an older or secondary device for outdoor play if you are concerned about damage or theft
Age-Appropriate Use
| Age Group |
Recommended Approach |
| Under 6 |
Always accompanied by a parent or guardian. Adult controls the device and narrates the experience. |
| 6–9 |
Accompanied by a parent or older sibling. Child holds the device but adult supervises closely. |
| 10–12 |
May play with a friend in a familiar, agreed area with clear boundaries and a way to contact parents. |
| 13+ |
Can play more independently, though check-ins and boundaries are still recommended. |
These are guidelines only. You know your child best — adjust accordingly based on their maturity, the area you live in, and your own comfort level.
Before Every Play Session — A Quick Checklist
- Boundaries agreed and understood
- Phone goes away at road crossings
- Child knows to stop walking before looking at the screen
- Device charged, case on
- Child has a way to contact you if needed
- Weather is suitable
- Water packed for longer walks
- "No fairy is worth going somewhere unsafe" reminder given
A Note on the Spirit of the App
Fairy Plus works best when it is a reason to spend time outside together — not a babysitter or a solo distraction. The parental PIN system, the daily challenges, and the shared reward moments are all designed with that in mind. The safest and most magical version of this app is one where a grown-up and a child are walking side by side, watching the world for signs of fairies.
If you have safety concerns or suggestions, please contact us at questions@fairy.plus.