THE EARLY YEARS
Toyhouse was established in 1979 and grew out of Home Visiting work the Adult Education Institute was undertaking to lonely, isolated or depressed women with young children. The idea was to support these women by regular visiting, to develop their parenting skills by means of demonstrating the value of toys and play, and by leaving them with toys to use until the next visit. The long term aim was to support these women in making use of Adult Education Institute daytime classes and thus increase their adult learning, hopefully, eventually to increase their chances of enjoyable, fulfilling employment.
When the success of the initial Home Visiting was realised it was decided that a larger number of families could benefit from the opportunity to borrow good quality, safe, durable toys to increase their range of tools for learning through play. So the first community Toy Library was established in a Community Centre in Shadwell. Families were invited to come along and choose a toy to borrow from a wooden child sized house full of toys - hence the name “Toyhouse”. This first Toy Library was run by a worker from the Adult Education Institute, but the next few Toy Libraries that opened were based in Clinics and Community Centres and were run by groups of parent volunteers. Soon the success of Toy Libraries became known to those in Education and the first Toy Libraries based in schools were set up, firstly in a Nursery school and later, when the users grew to be 5 years old, in a primary school.
There was a quiet period until 1984 when the Association developed significantly thanks to a large grant which facilitated the purchase of a large quantity of both big and table top sized toys, thick foam filled mats and shapes and so the Mobile Toy Library for Groups and Baby Bounce (now Early Years Soft Play) were born. The Mobile Toy Library for Groups is a toy lending service to groups who cater for under five’s and who have insufficient stock to satisfy their users. As their funding increases they are able to purchase their own toys and no longer need to borrow from us. Thus toys are freed and a new group use the service. In 1990 we lost the free storage shed where the large equipment was stored & so now we concentrate solely on lending table top toys, eliminating the problems transporting large items.
Baby Bounce at the Shadwell Centre, (now Early Years Soft Play & as from 2006 based at Mile End Play Pavilion), is a soft play facility for under 4’s and their parents and carers to enjoy together and consists of large, thick mats arranged across the hall floor, on top of which are placed 30 smaller foam filled shapes with which the children can play. Additionally there are climbing frames, rockers, a home corner, and Cosy Coupe cars. At first sessions were run by a member of the Adult Education Institute staff once a week but, due to the overwhelming popularity of this facility, there are now two weekly sessions in term time facilitated by a Toyhouse worker. Via Children’s Centre funding, a new venue has recently developed based at St Hilda’s East.
By 1985 the need for paid staff had been recognised and the G.L.C. Women’s Committee made a grant equivalent to one full time worker. This enabled the Association to employ an Administrator, a Toy Library Support Worker and someone to run both Baby Bounce and the Mobile Toy Library for Groups. Also office space was found and so Toyhouse became more visible and viable. In 1986, with the demise of the G.L.C., Tower Hamlets took up the funding and so later that year Toyhouse moved to its office base for 16 years at St. Mark’s Gate, offering support to 8 Toy Libraries but by 1989 that number has risen to 22.