Is the Children’s 15-Minute City an Effective Framework for Enhancing Children’s Health and Well-Being? An Empirical Analysis from Western China

Abstract

Increasing attention is being directed toward understanding the impact of urban built environments on children’s health. The concept of the 15-minute city, or “15-minute life circle”, in China is significant; however, the needs of the pediatric population are often overlooked. Walkability and accessibility to urban service facilities are crucial for promoting children’s well-being. This paper focuses on the old city of Guilin in western China as a case study. It investigates the service facilities within a 15-minute life circle that affect children’s physical health, mental health, and social engagement. Utilizing the Walking Index method, this study assesses the walkability and rationality of these facilities in 621 neighborhoods. Data were gathered from 200 questionnaires and interviews with children, concentrating on their daily use of these facilities, supplemented by a multi-source analysis. The findings reveal that the Walking Index in the study area is generally low, with an uneven distribution, primarily influenced by road network density, block size, and urban landscape patterns. This study proposes the development of a “Children’s Healthy 15-minute Life Circle”, which would increase child-friendly service facilities, pedestrian infrastructure, and urban road network density. It also advocates for constructing service facilities that enhance children’s health and the optimization of the spatial arrangement of these facilities. Furthermore, it suggests the effective utilization of urban landscapes to create a diverse system of leisure spaces for children. This study offers valuable insights for enhancing the walkability of urban life circle service facilities and establishing a child-friendly city.

1. Introduction

The construction of a healthy China is a national strategy. The “Outline of the Healthy China 2030 Plan [1]” emphasizes the health of people, with special attention to vulnerable groups such as older people and children. At the city and community levels, the vision of building healthy cities and realizing the 15-minute healthy life circle of cities is emphasized. As the main walking distance area of children, the spatial distribution of service facilities in the Neighborhood Life Circle ① will affect children’s willingness to walk and thus affect the frequency and types of children’s use of service facilities [2,3,4,5]. Relevant studies have shown that improving the walking accessibility of service facilities will have a positive impact on children’s health [6,7,8,9]. However, at present, there are problems such as poor walking accessibility and insufficient child-friendliness [10] in the Neighborhood Life Circle [11], inevitably forcing children to choose less walking and outdoor activities [12]. Neighborhood Life Circle refers to the basic unit that meets the work and life needs of urban and rural residents in the whole life cycle within a suitable daily walking range. It usually takes a 15-minute walk as the standard to build a comprehensive community service center to ensure that residents can meet their basic living needs within walking distance. Resulting children’s health problems, such as anxiety, obesity, and weakened immunity, are on the rise [13,14]. Existing studies mainly focus on the service radius and accessibility of service facilities from the perspective of the adult population and rarely consider the walkability of service facilities and the needs of children’s health from the children’s perspective [12]. Therefore, based on children’s health needs, this paper selects service facilities that could affect children’s physical health, mental health, and social adaptation, analyzes the walkability of service facilities, and provides scientific reference for establishing a healthy and friendly Neighborhood Life Circle for children.

2. Research Review

2.1. Children and Cities

The international community’s attention to children originated from the publication of the “Convention on the Rights of the Child” in 1989 [15,16], which put forward the principle of “The best interests of the child” as the theoretical basis for formulating public policies and made it clear that children enjoy the rights to survival, development, protection, and participation. In 1996, the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and the United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat) jointly put forward the “Child-Friendly Cities Initiative (CFCI)”, suggesting that children are entitled to a nurturing environment that ensures safety, access to vital services, and clean resources. They should have spaces for play, education, and personal growth, with their opinions valued. The CFCI works towards these goals by engaging local authorities, NGOs, businesses, academia, media, and children across more than 40 countries [17,18]. China has also made “persisting in encouraging children’s participation” one of the basic principles in the Program for the Development of Chinese Children (2021–2030) [19].

In 2001, Habitat II included children in environmental decision-making systems. In 2016, at the United Nations Conference on Housing and Sustainable Urban Development (Habitat III), UNICEF released “Your Voice in Habitat”, stating that children need an overall urban environment that is more convenient, safe, inclusive, and resilient. In May 2018, UNICEF published Shaping Urbanization for Children—A Handbook on Child-Responsive Urban Planning, which integrates planning, urban design, social behavior, economics, public management, and other disciplines to explore how cities can better serve the real needs of children [20].

2.2. 15-Minute City

The 15-minute city is an urban planning concept that aims to focus residents’ basic needs, such as living, working, and playing, within a 15-minute walk or bike ride by reducing their dependence on cars. The concept emphasizes density, proximity, diversity, and digitalization to promote sustainable urban development. Its core is to improve the spatial efficiency and quality of life of cities while reducing traffic congestion and carbon emissions. The origins of the 15-minute city idea can be traced back to urban planning movements of the early 20th century, such as neighborhood unit plans and new urbanism. These early ideas, which emphasized community self-sufficiency and walkability, laid the foundation for the development of the 15-minute city. In recent years, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, 15-minute cities have received a lot of attention for their emphasis on local communities.

The 15-minute city concept has already been implemented in several cities around the world. Paris, for example, took the lead in promoting the idea in 2019, achieving its goals by increasing green space and improving public transport. Other cities such as Portland, Melbourne, and Stockholm are also actively exploring related practices. However, many urban practices are still in the planning stage and have yet to form a comprehensive implementation strategy.

In the future, the development of the 15-minute city will require further research and practice to address its adaptability and implementation strategies in different urban environments. At the same time, combined with the development of digital technology and smart cities, 15-minute cities are expected to play a greater role in improving the efficiency of urban governance and the quality of life of residents.

2.3. Review of Walkability Research

In urban settings, there are complex links between human health and urban planning and transportation design. The impact of urban environment on human health is multifaceted. Studies have shown that air pollution, noise, and traffic congestion in cities have a negative impact on the health of residents. In addition, the increase of green and natural spaces in cities is believed to improve the mental health and overall well-being of residents.

The discussion on the travel mode of urban residents has been going on for a long time. From the earliest urban critics, including Jane Jacobs, to the later scholars of New Urbanism, all advocated the establishment of pedestrian-friendly neighborhoods and communities to improve the status of pedestrian transportation [21,22]. In the 1990s, Cervero, a scholar in the field of transportation planning, proposed three built environment factors that affect travel demand—density, diversity, and design—known as “3Ds” [23], which have become important theoretical sources for the study of walkability. Also in the 1990s, researchers in the field of public health found that the reduction of physical activity represented by walking would lead to a series of health problems [24,25], and actively sought interdisciplinary cooperation to enhance residents’ physical activity and improve residents’ health.

In 2003, Sealens and other scholars put forward the theory that built environment factors at the community scale affect residents’ walking behavior and used the term “walkability” for the first time [26]. From 2003 to 2010, large-scale ecological empirical studies in the Americas, Australia, and Europe proved that environmental factors have a significant impact on walking behavior [27,28,29]. Since then, walkability research has received more attention, and a large number of articles have summarized it.

From both subjective and objective perspectives, some scholars expanded walkability to “the degree of support for walking in the built environment and pedestrians’ evaluation of walking experience in the environment” [30]. In more specific research practices, some scholars have summarized walkability as “the degree of support and attraction of urban environments for walking, including providing a comfortable and safe environment for pedestrians, enabling people to reach various destinations within a reasonable time and physical capacity, and providing visual attraction in the walking network” [31,32]. Walkability is affected by many environmental factors, including the distribution of daily service facilities, road network density, population density, and other objectively measurable urban spatial attributes [26,33,34,35], as well as subjective usage feelings such as pedestrians’ perception of space safety when walking and the attractiveness of streetscapes to pedestrians [36,37]. Therefore, there are still many discussions on how to measure the factors affecting walkability more accurately. For example, Krizek created a community walking environment evaluation table, which constructs an indicator system from the dimensions of community living type, accessibility of shops and service facilities, street continuity, walking space, community beauty, and so on [38]. According to objective environmental factors, such as the diversity of destination types and spatial layout of users’ travel needs as measurement indicators, the most widely used method, such as Walk Score, is used.

2.4. Links Between Child Health and Service Facilities

This topic focuses on the environmental factors that influence children’s walking behavior. Children are active, and the demand and intensity of outdoor games are higher than other groups. As a socially vulnerable group, the guardian’s judgment on the safety of the walking environment will greatly affect the travel mode of children, so children have special environmental needs for walking [39,40,41]. However, as the improvement of physical activity will have a profound impact on the health level and quality of life throughout life [42,43], it has attracted particular attention from the government and researchers and has formed a relatively independent long-term discussion topic around it.

The concept of child health includes three aspects: physical health, mental health, and social adaptation [44,45,46]. The physiological characteristics of children are as follows: children’s immunity is relatively low, and they are susceptible to physiological diseases caused by various factors, such as obesity and respiratory system infection, while the psychological characteristics of children are as follows. As a special group, children have multiple needs for curiosity, growth, and participation. If the urban service system and social support system are weakened, children’s negative emotions, such as anxiety and panic, may occur, leading to psychological problems. In terms of social adaptation, if children get along harmoniously with the surrounding environment, maintain good psychological quality, and moderately participate in social activities, it will have a positive impact on children’s healthy growth [47]. Studies have shown that children’s health is closely related to the service facilities of Neighborhood Life Circle. For example, the obesity rate of children is negatively correlated with the accessibility and quantity of outdoor sports fields [48], e.g., small parks, playgrounds, and other activity facilities in their neighborhoods. Green spaces, such as parks and pedestrian greenways, can promote children’s psychological feelings of security, comfort, and pleasure. Sports facilities such as gymnasiums and science and technology museums can not only provide children with education, culture, and sports needs but also provide places for children’s social interaction.

To sum up, there is room for further discussion on the walkability of Neighborhood Life Circle. In the construction of the index system, the existing index system studies mainly the dimensions of safety, comfort, aesthetics, and accessibility, and less considers the health dimension [49,50]. In terms of research content, most of the existing studies focus on public service facilities, commercial spaces, traffic stations, or urban streets from a single perspective, and few studies consider the public and commercial service facilities of the Neighborhood Life Circle comprehensively. In terms of research objects, less attention has been paid to special groups such as children and older people. Due to physiological reasons, the walking needs of this special group are different from those of ordinary adults, and the environmental factors affecting their walkability need to be discussed separately. Based on this, this study takes the old urban area of Guilin, China, as an example [51]. The 15-minute city is an urban planning concept that aims to create a community where residents can reach all basic amenities and daily needs within 15 min by walking, biking, or public transportation. Based on the theory of the 15-minute life circle, this study uses the method of the Walking Index to conduct a quantitative study on the walkability of the service facilities related to children’s health, to create a pedestrian-friendly and healthy growing neighborhood for children, and thus provide planning suggestions.

3. Research Framework and Data Sources

3.1. Research Framework

Based on the 15-minute life circle and the theory of children’s health, we put forward the concept of the “Children’s Healthy 15-minute Life Circle”. In the Children’s Healthy 15-minute Life Circle, children can safely and quickly access public and commercial service facilities to meet children’s physical [52], psychological, and social health needs. This paper aims to study the walkability of service facilities in Children’s Healthy 15-minute Life Circle, which is divided into the following three parts: First, we select all kinds of service facilities related to children’s health needs, that is, select public and commercial service facilities that can meet their needs based on children’s physical, mental, and social health needs, and improve the indicators of these service facilities. Second, we measure the walkability of service facilities and calculate the Single Point Walking Index (SPWI) and Area Walking Index (AWI) through ArcGIS spatial analysis and correlation analysis, in which the Area Walking Index (AWI) includes the Sub-district Walking Index (SWI) and Overall Walking Index (OWI). Third, we evaluate the walkability of service facilities in each Children’s Healthy 15-minute Life Circle, analyze the configuration of service facilities in depth according to the scores of the walkability of service facilities in each life circle, and then propose improvement strategies and suggestions (Figure 1,

Table 1. Walking Index methods in this research.

Walking Index		Methods
Single Point Walking Index (SPWI)		First, OD Cost Matrix Analysis in ArcGIS software 10.8 was used to calculate the time taken by children to reach various service facilities within 15 minutes, taking POI of 621 urban neighborhoods in the old urban area of Guilin as the starting point of walking. POI data (Point of Interest) are from the Amap open API. Then, the time attenuation rate is obtained by substituting the corresponding time attenuation function. Finally, the initial SPWI is obtained by summarizing the weights of all service facilities after attenuation.
Sub-district Walking Index (SWI)	Area Walking Index (AWI)	The SPWI of an urban neighborhood was spatially linked through the ArcGIS Spatial Join function to obtain the Walking Index at the sub-district scale, which was named the Sub-district Walking Index (SWI), to observe the changing trend of the Walking Index from the sub-district scale.
Overall Walking Index (OWI)		In order to obtain the values of other data points except urban neighborhood points, Ordinary Kriging in ArcGIS was applied to perform Spatial Interpolation on the Walking Index of each neighborhood in the old urban area of Guilin City, and the OWI prediction of the old urban area was obtained.

).

3.2. Data Sources

We use multi-source data, including the data of Guilin’s old urban area. The main sources are as follows:

(1)

Road network data are derived from the Open Street Map website, and the obtained road network data are topologically processed by ArcGIS software (Figure 2).

(2)

POI data (Point of Interest) are from the Amap open API.

(3)

Twelve sub-district administrative areas data are from the website of the China National Bureau of Statistics.

(4)

Data on the daily use of service facilities relating to 621 neighborhoods are from 200 questionnaires and interviews conducted by authors in the study area.

3.3. Research Area and Object

Guilin, renowned as a preeminent tourist destination within China, has garnered international acclaim for its distinctive karst landscape, which is emblematic of the diverse topography found across the country. Situated within the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Guilin serves as a microcosm of the expansive western frontier of China, a region that embodies the broader challenges and characteristics of China’s less developed areas. Given the sheer geographical scope of China, there exists a pronounced disparity in economic advancement between its eastern and western territories [53].

The paper focuses on the old city of Guilin in western China as a case study. The city of Guilin, known for its unique karst landforms, represents the vast frontier areas of China’s western regions, which face the challenge of uneven economic development with China’s eastern regions. The special situation of Guilin in urban development, including its status as a tourist city and its representation in the development of the western region. According to the data of the seventh national population census, the population between 0 and 14 years old in Guilin is 968064, accounting for 19.63% of the total population. Compared with 2010, the proportion of the population in this age group increased by 3.48 percentage points. This indicates that the population of children plays an important role in the population structure of Guilin.

The eastern regions, which are more prosperous, have been the focal point for numerous scholarly inquiries into the assessment of walkability within the context of healthy living environments and the creation of child-friendly urban spaces [54]. However, such research is notably scarce in the western regions, which are comparatively less developed and thus present unique challenges and opportunities for urban planning and public health.

This study seeks to bridge this gap by conducting an in-depth investigation and analyzing a multitude of data sources. It focuses on the old urban district of Guilin, a representative area within the underdeveloped western region, to assess the walkability of neighborhoods and its implications for the health and well-being of children in the area. Through this research, we aim to contribute to the broader discourse on urban design and public health by providing insights that are grounded in the realities of China’s western regions (Figure 3).

The scope of this research is selected from the old urban area of Guilin, Guangxi, China, including 12 sub-districts that belong to 5 urban districts (

Table 2. Research area sub-districts and their belonging districts.

	Sub-Districts	District
1	Beimen	Diecai District
2	Diecai
3	Lijun	Xiufeng District
4	Xiufeng
5	Jiashan
6	Xiangshan	Xiangshan District
7	Nanmen
8	Dongjiang	Qixing District
9	Qixing
10	Lidong
11	Chuanshan
12	Pingshan	Xiangshan District

, Figure 4).

According to the “United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child” and other relevant provisions, children generally refer to minors between the ages of 0 and 18 [55]. Combined with the research theme, the selected research objects are limited to children between the ages of 4 and 18 who can walk independently.

3.4. Selection of Service Facilities

Because children are not mature physically and psychologically, they have special needs for the physical space and social environment that are different from adults. Children’s health needs are reflected in three aspects: physical health, mental health, and social adaptation. In terms of physical health, we select service facilities that could impact children’s physical health such as fitness activities, myopia, obesity, and other diseases; these service facilities include comprehensive gymnasiums, Internet cafes, general hospitals, etc. In terms of mental health, service facilities related to children’s anxiety, panic, depression, and other mental health problems were selected, such as parks and plazas, amusement parks, schools, etc. In terms of social adaptation, we choose service facilities that can provide places for children to carry out social interaction and activities, such as museums, science and technology museums, community cultural centers, etc. Therefore, based on the needs of children’s health, this paper selects relevant service facilities according to Chinese national guidelines and standards regarding children’s health built environment design, such as “Urban Residential Area Planning and Design Standards” and “Urban Child-Friendly Space Construction Guidelines”, combined with the Amap POI classification, and constructs a Children’s Healthy 15-minute Life Circle service facilities index system, which contains 6 categories of first-level indicators. It includes types of medical service facilities, educational service facilities [51], ecological service facilities, commercial service facilities, cultural and sports service facilities, and transportation service facilities, as well as 22 categories of second-level indicators (Figure 5,

Table 3. Selection of service facilities related to children’s health and weights of service facilities.

First-Level Indicators	Second-Level Indicators	Frequency (%)	Weights (%)	Effects on Children’s Health
Medical	Community health service center	0.23	0.87	The scope and accessibility of medical service facilities have an important impact on the first aid time of children and the convenience of obtaining drugs for children with chronic diseases.
	General hospital	0.24	0.93
	Pharmacy	0.29	1.11
	Clinic	0.18	0.70
Educational	School (kindergarten, primary school, secondary school)	8.05	31.09	Functional destinations such as kindergartens, primary and secondary schools will encourage students to walk or ride to school to promote daily physical activities for people of different ages.
Ecological	Parks and squares	1.75	6.76	Open spaces such as parks and squares can promote children’s physical and mental health, and their accessibility determines children’s exposure to the natural environment, which in turn affects children’s environmental perception ability and physical activity level.
	Public toilet	0.61	2.38	Sanitary toilet conditions directly affect children’s health and experience, such as slips, bacterial infections and odors.
Commercial	Supermarket	1.81	6.98	The accessibility of food facilities such as supermarkets, convenience stores and restaurants has an impact on the balance of children’s food choices and nutritional intake, thus affecting children’s exposure to health risks such as overweight and obesity. The absence of such services might be correlated to malnutrition.
	Restaurants	1.15	4.44
	Convenience store	2.52	9.72
	Tobacco and alcohol retail	0.07	0.26	The accessibility and visibility of tobacco and alcohol retail facilities will affect the exposure probability of children and adolescents, increase tobacco smoke exposure, and affect the neurological and respiratory health of children.
	Playground	0.15	0.58	Playground space can increase children’s physical activity, and can also help children reduce anxiety and release pressure.
	Amusement park	0.67	2.60
	Internet bar	0.05	0.19	The change of electronic media to game ecology also changes children’s game conditions and indirectly affects children’s growth.
Cultural and sports	Sports complex	0.80	3.10	Physical activity can meet and promote children’s needs for healthy growth, including the development of their cognitive abilities, emotional expression, social skills, and independence.
	Other sports venues	0.90	3.49
	Training institution	1.36	5.24	Cultural facilities provide children with a comprehensive development environment by providing educational, cultural, sporting and social opportunities to promote their physical and mental health and personal growth.
	Library	1.11	4.27
	Museum	0.41	1.58
	Science and technology museum	0.33	1.28
	Community cultural activity center	1.20	4.65
Transportation	Bus station	2.01	7.77	Bus stops are transportation hubs for children commuting to school or outside activities, and are essential for them to develop healthy travel habits.

).

4. Children’s Healthy 15-Minute Life Circle

4.1. Single Point Walking Index (SPWI)

4.1.1. Classification Weights of Service Facilities

This research investigated the use of service facilities by children in the form of questionnaires and interviews. A total of 200 questionnaires were distributed in the study area, and 188 valid questionnaires were collected. According to the results of the questionnaire, the weights of various service facilities were calculated, and the weight table of service facilities related to children’s health was developed (Table 3).

4.1.2. Time Attenuation Curve

The time attenuation curve reflects a walking pattern, that is, the possibility of walking to a service facility decreases with the increase of time. Similarly, the shorter the time to reach the facility, the more likely people are to walk. Based on the survey results of the longest walking time acceptable to children for various service facilities in the questionnaire, the curve fitting is carried out in Origin software 2021 to obtain the time attenuation curves of different service facilities (Figure 6). The horizontal axis is the maximum walking time that children can accept to reach the facility, divided into six levels: 5 min, 10 min, 15 min, 20 min, 25 min, and 30 min. The vertical axis is the value of the time attenuation coefficient, which reflects children’s willingness to travel on foot.

In general, when the time exceeds 10 min, the time attenuation curve of all kinds of service facilities has an obvious downward trend, and each facility presents different time attenuation laws. The attenuation curve of service facilities that are required for daily life and are highly substitutable decreases rapidly, such as public toilets and convenience stores. The time decline of service facilities with high scarcity and sense of value is slower, such as science and technology museums, museums, libraries, and other cultural and sports facilities.

4.1.3. Calculation and Correction of SPWI

When calculating the SPWI, we consider that children walk slower than adults and select 70 m/min as the walking speed of children by referring to relevant literature ②. Firstly, OD Cost Matrix Analysis in ArcGIS software was used to calculate the time taken by children to reach various service facilities within 15 min, taking POI of 621 urban neighborhoods in the old urban area of Guilin as the starting point of walking. Secondly, the time attenuation rate is obtained by substituting the corresponding time attenuation function. Finally, the initial Walking Index of a single point is obtained by summarizing the weights of all service facilities after attenuation.

Since the SPWI represents the linear distance between the urban neighborhood and the service facilities, to consider that people walking along the street in real life will be affected by road intersections and other factors, it is necessary to modify the SPWI by using urban neighborhood length and intersection density. The attenuation laws of urban neighborhood length and intersection density are based on the existing research walk score (

Table 4. Attenuation rate reference for neighborhood length and intersection density based on the walk score.

Intersection Density (per km2)	Attenuation Rate (%)	Neighborhood Length/100 m	Attenuation Rate (%)
>200	0	≤120	0
150–200	1	120–150	1
120–150	2	150–165	2
90–120	3	165–180	3
60–90	4	180–195	4
<60	5	>195	5

Source: https://www.walkscore.com (accessed on 2 July 2024).

).

4.1.4. Result Analysis

The revised SPWI of the old urban area of Guilin is shown below (Figure 7). We normalized the revised SPWI to make its value range between 0 and 100. Therefore, the higher the score of the neighborhood, the more suitable it is for children to walk. To facilitate the study, we divided the SPWI into 5 levels (

Table 5. Grade classification of Single Point Walking Index (SPWI).

SPWI	Walkability Rating
90–100	Walker’s Paradise
70–89	Very Walkable
50–69	Somewhat Walkable
25–49	Poorly walkable
0–24	Very poorly walkable

).

Quantity distribution: The number of neighborhoods with an SPWI above 70 in the old urban area of Guilin is small, accounting for only 3.06% of the total. The service facilities in these neighborhoods are more reasonable within the Children’s Healthy 15-minute Life Circle, and children can meet most of the needs of a healthy life by walking. In neighborhoods with an SPWI of 50–69, some service facilities can be reached within walking distance, and walkability is average, accounting for 11.76%. There are more neighborhoods with poor SPWI; 24.80% are poor with SPWI between 25 and 49, and 60.39% are very poor, with SPWI between 0 and 24. The number of service facilities within the walking range of such neighborhoods is small, and most trips need to rely on other means of transportation such as motorcycles and cars (Figure 8).

Spatial distribution: residential areas with high SPWI are concentrated in the central area of the old city, among which Binjiang Road, the greenway around the city water system of “Two rivers and four lakes” and the characteristic pedestrian streets such as Zhengyang Pedestrian Street and Dongxi Alley provide rich walking space for children. Yijia Huating, Guiming Commercial Building, and other residential areas surrounded by Ximen Bridge–Xinyi Bridge–Wenming Road–South Ring Road have a more comfortable walking experience. The residential areas with poor walking experience are mainly distributed in the urban edge with low road network density, industrial and mining areas, or areas with more natural mountains and rivers. For example, there are many mountains and waters in the areas on both sides of the North Huancheng Road, and the distribution of service facilities is divided by mountains and rivers, resulting in a poor walking experience for children in nearby neighborhoods such as Hanlinju and Huguangshanse.

4.2. Area Walking Index (AWI)

4.2.1. Sub-District Walking Index (SWI)

The SPWI of an urban neighborhood was spatially linked through the ArcGIS Spatial Join function to obtain the Walking Index at the sub-district scale, which was named the Sub-district Walking Index (SWI) (Figure 9), to observe the changing trend of the Walking Index from the sub-district scale.

(1) Overall, the distribution trend of SWI is higher in central, eastern, and southern areas, and lower in northwest areas. The sub-districts with higher SWI mainly include Nanmen, Dongjiang, and Lidong sub-districts, etc., while those with lower SWI mainly include Beimen, Lijun, and Jiashan sub-districts. The SWI is not only affected by road network density and natural geographic factors but also by urban neighborhood scale. For example, the Jiashan sub-district is located on the edge of the old urban area due to its large urban neighborhood size and is separated by more natural mountains and water bodies, resulting in a relatively dispersed distribution of service facilities, so the SWI weakens quickly, thus affecting the SWI of the sub-district.

(2) From the perspective of service facility types, areas with higher overall SWI generally have higher walkability among their service facilities in various types (Figure 10). First of all, transportation service facilities dominated by bus stations have a higher SWI than other service facilities. Public transportation in Guilin is mainly based on buses, so its distribution quantity is large with high coverage. Secondly, in the actual measurement, it is found that most of the service facilities do not contain all types of health service facilities. The SWI of ecological service facilities such as parks and squares is not high in all sub-districts, which may be because parks and squares mostly rely on municipal investment, which costs a lot of capital investment but has less income, so the overall number is small. Thirdly, the survey finds that the sub-districts with high SWI of educational, cultural and sports, commercial, and medical service facilities are mainly located in the central area of the old city. For example, Pingshan has better supporting facilities for education, Lidong has high scores for cultural and sports facilities, and Nanmen has outstanding supporting services for commercial and medical services, which can be attributed to the influence of urban development history, namely, older community service facilities have a complete range of infrastructure. However, the sub-districts located at the edge of the urban development area, such as Jiashan and Lijun, have poor performance in the walkability of many types of service facilities, indicating that the level of supporting facilities and construction is lagging, with poor child-friendliness.

(3) Calculate the correlation between facility density, facility mixing degree, facility richness, and service facilities of each sub-district, and find the internal relationship. Facility density refers to the number of service facilities per hectare in the sub-district. Facility mixing degree refers to the ratio of the number of various types of service facilities in a sub-district to the total number of all service facilities, which is used to describe the degree of diversity of various service facilities. Facility richness refers to the mathematical ratio between the number of facility types in the sub-district and all 22 facility types and describes the richness of facility types (

Table 6. The correlation between facility density, facility mixing degree, facility richness, and service facilities of each sub-district.

Indicators	Calculation Formula	Method Description
Facility Density	X = Sn/ha	The number of service facilities per hectare in the sub-district is S
Facility Mixing Degree	$X=-{\displaystyle \sum _{i=1}^n(pi\times \ln pi)}$	pi is the ratio of Class i facilities to the number of all facilities in the sub-district
Facility Richness	X = C/N	C represents the number of service facility types in the sub-district, and N represents all 22 types of service facilities

). SPSS software 27.0 was used to conduct a Pearson Correlation Analysis between the SWI and the above three indicators. The results are shown below (Figure 11). The correlation coefficient ranges from −1 to 1. When r > 0, there is a positive correlation between the two factors; when r < 0, there is a negative correlation between the two factors. Among them, the correlation coefficients of SWI with facility density, facility mixing degree, and facility richness are 0.486, 0.110, and 0.577, respectively. It can be seen that there is no significant positive correlation between facility mixing degree and SWI, but there is a large positive correlation with facility richness, that is, the more types of service facilities, the more walkable. The correlation between facility density and SWI was close to moderate, indicating that the density of service facilities helps to promote children’s walking experience.

4.2.2. Overall Walking Index (OWI)

The Kriging method is a method to predict or simulate the value of unknown data points by calculating the weighted average of the surrounding known data points. To obtain the values of other data points except urban neighborhood points, Ordinary Kriging in ArcGIS was applied to perform Spatial Interpolation on the Walking Index of each neighborhood in the old urban area of Guilin City, and the OWI prediction of the old urban area was obtained (Figure 12).

(1) From the perspective of overall spatial distribution, the spatial distribution characteristics of the OWI and the SWI are similar. The central area of the old city forms a pedestrian-friendly area for children, and the second-level pedestrian-friendly area is mainly located in the southern and eastern areas of the old city. It is worth noting that the division of natural geographical elements affects the spatial distribution of service facilities to a certain extent, and Guilin, as a famous city with mountains and rivers, this situation is particularly obvious. For example, due to the many mountains within the scope of Pingshan, the forest park in the west covers a large area, and the eastern area is close to the Lijiang River valley, which has a certain impact on the walkability of the area.

(2) From the spatial distribution of classified service facilities (Figure 13), the spatial distribution of the six categories of service facilities, namely medical service facilities, educational service facilities, ecological service facilities, commercial service facilities, cultural and sports service facilities, and transportation service facilities, are clustered in the southeast region. Compared with the ecological, transportation, and cultural and sports service facilities, the clustering tendency of educational, medical, and commercial service facilities is more obvious. To a certain extent, this reflects the imbalance of resource allocation. Children living in communities with a higher OWI have a higher chance of walking to obtain better educational, cultural, medical, and other resources.

4.3. The Relationship Between Walking Accessibility and Children’s Social and Mental Health

Walkability is a key factor in promoting social engagement in an urban environment. According to the present study, the Walking Index shows that walking accessibility is generally low and unevenly distributed in the study area. This has a direct impact on children’s accessibility to services, including social and leisure spaces. In places with high walking accessibility, children are more likely to be out and about frequently, interacting with peers and community members, thereby enhancing social skills and social networks. For example, sports facilities and science and technology museums not only meet the educational, cultural, and sporting needs of children, but also provide a place for social interaction.

Walkability promotes mental health. The link between walking accessibility and mental health can be understood in several ways. First, walking is itself a physical activity, and physical activity has been linked to a reduced risk of mental health problems such as anxiety and depression. Research shows that services within walking distance can positively affect children’s health, including mental health. Second, walkable green spaces, such as parks and pedestrian greenways, can promote children’s sense of psychological security, comfort, and pleasure, which are important components of mental health. In addition, the effective use of the urban landscape can create a diverse leisure space system for children, which helps to enhance not only their physical health, but also their mental health.

Based on the above analysis, we propose specific policy and planning recommendations in the paper to improve children’s walking environments, thereby promoting their social and psychological well-being. For example, increasing walking paths, improving street safety, creating more green and public spaces, and optimizing the spatial layout of services to make them more pedestrian-friendly are all strategies that can improve children’s social and mental health.

4.4. The Relationship Between Urban Planning and Child Health

Urban environments, urban communities, and urban planning have a profound impact on children’s physical and mental health. Studies have shown that urban living is more likely than rural living to lead to serious mental health problems, such as depression and anxiety, This poses a major challenge to child Health worldwide [56]. Physical design of the urban environment, including factors such as green space, traffic exposure, and housing density, directly impacts children’s physical development and mental health [57]. In addition, rapid urbanization has brought many health problems, such as environmental pollution, malnutrition, and infectious diseases, which not only affect urban residents; it also has implications for children in rural and remote areas [58].

At a theoretical and practical level, there is a growing global focus on child-friendly cities. The study highlights that urban planning should consider the needs of children, such as providing safe outdoor spaces and rich natural environments, to promote the physical and mental development of children [59]. Research in environmental psychology also points out that children’s attachment to the urban environment is crucial to the development of their personal identity, and cities should provide children with rich opportunities for exploration and participation in order to promote their social and cognitive development [60]. These studies provide important guidance for policy makers and urban planners to design more inclusive and sustainable urban spaces that support the healthy growth of children.

This study used a walkability index method to assess children’s walkability, which is used in several cities around the world [61], which suggests that the walking index is an effective tool that can be scaled up globally to assess and improve children’s walking environments. The research can draw on global evaluation indicators such as safety, comfort, fun, diversity, and accessibility, which have been used to evaluate child-friendly community public spaces in several cities around the world. From the perspective of children’s philosophy, the study incorporates children’s rights and needs into the core elements of urban planning, which is in line with the global trend of child-friendly city construction.

Through the above analysis, we can see that in the process of implementing the “15-minute life circle for children’s health” in Guilin City, its research findings have a wide range of links and mutual learning with global experience. The city of Guilin can use these global experiences to optimize and upgrade its urban planning to better meet children’s health and well-being needs.

5. Conclusions

In the current discourse surrounding the development of China’s 15-minute life circles, there is a discernible oversight regarding the specific needs of vulnerable demographics, such as older people, children, and individuals with disabilities. This paper posits that to foster a healthy 15-minute life circle for children, it is imperative to integrate their voices into the urban planning process to address their multifaceted needs, encompassing physical well-being, mental health, and social adaptability. The following recommendations are proposed to enhance the child-centric urban fabric:

Enhancing Urban Pedestrian Infrastructure for Children: To foster a child-friendly urban environment, it is essential to enhance the pedestrian infrastructure and increase the density of urban road networks. This strategy not only boosts the likelihood of children walking but also promotes their physical health by providing low-intensity physical activity that strengthens heart and lung function. A dense road network facilitates social interactions, nurturing children’s social skills as they encounter peers and neighbors while walking. The contrast between the high-density eastern part and the low-density western part of the old city highlights the impact of network density on walkability. Improving the western region’s branch roads, as Jane Jacobs noted, can enhance children’s access to services and create a healthier, safer walking environment [22], aligning with the findings of Carver [50]. In essence, targeted improvements to road network density, especially in less connected areas, are crucial for creating urban spaces that support children’s physical activity and social development.

Establishing a Comprehensive System of Urban Service Facilities for Children’s Health: The paper emphasizes the need to optimize the spatial configuration of service facilities to ensure they are child-friendly. It points out the uneven distribution of ecological and cultural-sports facilities in certain areas of Guilin, suggesting that urban planning should consider the health needs of children. The paper recommends prioritizing the planning and quality improvement of service facilities frequently used by children, such as schools, parks, squares, and bus stations. It also calls for government measures to limit the visibility and accessibility of facilities that may pose risks to children’s health, such as tobacco and alcohol retail outlets and internet cafes within the Children’s Healthy 15-minute Life Circle.

Creating a Rich System of Children’s Leisure Spaces: The paper advocates for the effective use of natural geographical elements like mountains and water to create a landscape ecological system that blends with the urban environment. For a city like Guilin, known for its superior natural landscapes, it is crucial to protect these resources and integrate them with the urban fabric to provide children with diverse outdoor spaces for healthy growth. This approach can enhance children’s physical and mental health and promote social development. The paper also suggests using landscape resources to develop recreational and ecological facilities that reflect local culture, creating a child-friendly pedestrian environment (

Table 7. Recommendations for child-centric urban fabric.

Suggestions	Detailed Lists	Health Benefits
1. Enhancing Urban Pedestrian Infrastructure for Children	a. To foster a child-friendly walking environment. b. To increase the density of urban road networks, especially in less connected areas.	Physical activity Social development
2. Establishing a Comprehensive System of Urban Service Facilities for Children’s Health	a. To optimize the spatial configuration of service facilities and ensure they are child-friendly. b. To prioritize the planning and quality improvement of service facilities frequently used by children. c. To limit the visibility and accessibility of facilities that may pose risks to children’s health.	Physical activity Social development Keeping away from deleterious environments
3. Creating a Rich System of Children’s Leisure Spaces	a. To create a landscape ecological system that blends with the urban environment. b. To develop recreational and ecological facilities.	Physical activity Physical and mental health Social development

).

At the neighborhood level of Children’s Healthy 15-minute Life Circles, the paper evaluates the walkability of health-related service facilities from a child-centric perspective. It aims to provide insights into the development of children’s health service facilities in the context of building a child-friendly city. The paper acknowledges its limitation in focusing on quantitative research and suggests that future studies should consider children’s subjective experiences and perceptions, increase the sample size, and thus make the research findings more relevant, practical, and comprehensive.

In promoting the transformation of urban public space, Guilin needs to increase capital investment, optimize urban planning, and encourage community and public participation in order to improve the quality of urban space and service efficiency. At the same time, Guilin will vigorously develop universal childcare and preschool education and improve the quality and equity of public services such as education and medical care. In the protection of children’s rights, Guilin will strengthen the classified protection and care measures for children in difficulties and improve the child welfare system. In addition, Guilin will make use of its characteristic cultural tourism resources to expand children’s growth space, develop outdoor education and recreational activities suitable for children, and strengthen the construction of urban green space and public space to provide more opportunities for natural experience. In terms of community governance, Guilin will improve the level of community service by establishing convenient facilities and promoting the construction of community elderly care and care service facilities and create a 15-minute life circle.

Through the above measures, the city of Guilin can gradually overcome the challenges and obstacles encountered in the implementation of the “Children’s healthy 15-minute life circle” and create a healthier and more friendly living environment for children.

This academic paper contributes to the discourse on urban planning by advocating for a more inclusive approach that prioritizes the needs of children, ensuring that the 15-minute life circle is not only functional but also conducive to the well-being of the youngest members of society.

Notes

①

Neighborhood, or community, including residential buildings, residential units, public housing, and so on. The “15-minute city” in China refers to the concept of the “15-minute life circle”. It usually means that within a 15-minute walk from home, residents can enjoy the public services they need every day.

②

Children’s walking speed varies according to age and individual differences. According to clinical experience, children who have just learned to walk may walk 10–20 steps per minute, while children aged 6–12 can walk about 100 steps per minute, and can reach 120 steps when walking fast. The Physical Activity Guide for Children and Adolescents in China (2018 Edition) [62] provides the average walking speed of primary school students in different age groups: aged 6 to 7 walk 55–65 m per minute, aged 8 to 10 walk 65–75 m per minute, and aged 11–13 walk 75–85 m per minute. Average values were used in this study, with 70 m/min selected as the walking speed of children.