This project would revitalise their imaginative play toy collection which comprises some of the most consistently popular toys in the library, however the current collection is aging, with many of these toys being acquired between 2012 and 2016 and appearing dated in both appearance and functionality.

In recent years the Grovedale Toy Library have relied on donated 2nd hand toys to supplement this category as they focussed on other categories of higher need (for demographic age of members).  With a drastic increase in members across 2022, many of whom are now moving into the age bracket where imaginative play really comes to life, this is a critical time for them to focus on the quality of these toys. 

In sustainability terms, they have observed a shift in member preferences toward wooden toys over plastic, which are generally more expensive for us to purchase good quality, and less common to receive as donations.

Imaginative play covers many themes – in most demand are animal based toys (farms, zoos, wild animals, historical/dinosaurs), emergency services, space exploration, fantasy (castles & fairies), and home life (doll houses). This grant seeks to improve some of the developmentally earlier types of imaginative play, those in which the child moves an object, person or creature within a scene to creatively act out what they may have observed or what they imagine.  They also refer to this as small world play.  This differs from the next stage of imaginative play which is role play, where the child becomes the role that they are acting out.

Grovedale Toy Library – website