Frome-based family support charity, Purple Elephant, has relaunched its Toy Library, which will be open to all from borrowing each Wednesday afternoon
Located within the children’s reading area on the ground floor of the Frome Library building, the charity’s staff and volunteers will be on hand to welcome local families to join this newly revamped venture.
More than 50 Play Sacks, suitable for babies, toddlers and youngsters up to approximately age six, are available, with the brightly coloured drawstring bags providing a wonderful experience for children who can make their choice from the onsite picture catalogue (also viewable online) and then take it home to play with.
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The contents of the bags have been selected to support learning and development through play, with the borrowing of up to two Play Sacks per family at any one time available, from 1pm to 3pm on a Wednesday afternoon.
Ranging from a simple bag packed with nearly a hundred building blocks, to texture toys with shapes and colours for very young learners, to Brio train tracks, a marble run or outdoor circus skills equipment, the Toy Library Play Sacks are a simple but effective way of offering little ones ‘new’ toys every week, changing with their developing characters.
This sharing and re-use system will also help to reduce wastage and landfill dumping, save money on unnecessary purchases and stop the family home becoming cluttered with even bigger mountains of discarded toys.
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Frome and area families who would like to borrow toys simply need to join the Frome Library as a member (which is free; a parent/career will need to bring their id/address proof to the Library and complete a simple form) and then come along on Wednesday afternoons to select a take-home-toy.
A fee of £2 (£1 if on Universal Benefit), paid in cash, is chargeable for a fortnightly loan but as Purple Elephant’s organising team explains, “We are keen to let people know that the Toy Library, like all our services, is about encouraging families to play together, so there is no deposit needed or any penalty for breakages. Accidents happen, toys wear out – that’s all part of play.
“We are delighted that Frome Library has joined with us in this exciting venture. The library in our town is so much more than just a book-lending place. Each year it becomes an increasingly vital part of our community, a hub of activity for even the very young, so we can’t wait to play… more!”
The Frome Library, where the Play Sacks are kept for selection and collection, is located on Justice Lane, near the Market Yard car park. Full details of how to use the Toy Library loans service, its opening hours and pictures of the Play Sack contents can be found on the Purple Elephant website www.purpleelephant.org.uk/toy-library