Playgrounds in Manitoba's largest school division will be mostly off-limits as long as remote learning is in place.

The Winnipeg School Divison says it will close playgrounds except during the school day for the duration of the code red period when most students are learning from home.

The division says outdoor play is one of the few pleasures families have during the pandemic, but it says people have been congregating on the grounds at all hours, defeating the purpose of trying to disrupt the potential for COVID-19 to spread.