Legislation and guidelines pertinent to children's play spaces in residential environments were gathered by means of an international inventory and a comparative study of 25 countries. Findings were directed toward those professionals who influence the development of legislation and guidelines for residential space use and design. The objective was to obtain as wide a response as possible from as many countries as possible. Respondents were selected through utilization of the resources of the International Playground Association, the Child in the City project (Canada), and officials from various institutes of higher education and public policy organizations. A questionnaire sent to respondents in the selected countries requested information on standards governing play space allocation, application and enforcement of guidelines, allocation of play spaces for different age groups, types of activities provided in residential developments, and jurisdictional differences between government bodies. Legislation from the 25 countries, as well as strategies and requirements for law enforcement are compared. This document is expected to help policy makers at different levels examine critically their country's current legislation and develop policies based on knowledge of successful programs in other countries. Appendices include the questionnaire, a summary of findings by country, and definitions of terms. (Author/DB)