Conference Report: TOY for Inclusion
Last Updated: 03 December 2020
by Abriel SCHIEFFELERS
The Salvation Army runs a pilot project for TOY for inclusion play hub in The Netherlands that focuses on early childhood education and care with a focus on Roma children.
An update on the TOY for Inclusion model was presented in an online conference on November 17th which introduced the activities of the hubs, presented examples and testimonials, and highlighted the role of cities and local-level actors in scaling up projects.
The TOY for Inclusion Model
Currently, TOY for Inclusion has 15 hubs in 8 European countries. Through these play hubs, parents get to know other parents from diverse backgrounds and children have a chance to acclimate to educational contexts in a non-threatening way. The project promotes social inclusion, as families from different cultural and socio-economic backgrounds are invited to participate and are run by local action teams made up of a variety of stakeholders from different areas of expertise including early childhood development, psychology, social work, and more.
One play hub in Italy operates as a mobile play hub where activities are offered to children in different neighborhoods. In a play hub in Croatia, children are allowed to borrow educational toys that they may not have access to at home. Workshops for parents, reading aloud activities, and arts and crafts sessions are also offered. Many play hubs are located in communities where levels of poverty and unemployment are high and are tailored to the unique needs of their community.
Areas for growth and opportunities to provide assistance
There is a need for more hubs that can facilitate greater numbers of children who would benefit from the service as well as a need to adapt the hubs to accomodate special needs children (training for staff, accessibility, etc.). It is also necessary for advocacy to establish these play hubs as being a valuable solution to providing early childhood education on a national and EU level, as policy makers need to be made aware of this choice of informal care given the gap in access to early childhood education faced by many families.
During the pandemic, many hubs provided activity packages for children and tablets for pre-school children in families where access to technology was limited.
The role of cities
There is a necessary role for cities in taking the Toy for Inclusion model to the next step. The TOY for Inclusion hubs are close to the community and flexible to adapt to local needs and can help bridge the gap for children left without childcare or preschool because of the lack of placements. With a growing level of child poverty that has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 crisis, the TOY for Inclusion hubs present a valuable tool for prioritizing a good start in life for all children.
The role of The Salvation Army
The Salvation Army already runs one TOY for Inclusion hub in The Netherlands, and there is the opportunity to establish more hubs in other countries. Particularly in territories that are already working on early childhood education with vulnerable groups including Roma, the TOY for Inclusion hubs could offer an established method for long-lasting impact in the lives of children and families. For more information on the TOY for Inclusion hubs and establishing a hub in your country, please contact Iara De Witte at iara.de.witte@legerdesheils.nl
More information on TOY for Inclusion hubs can be found here: https://www.reyn.eu/toy4inclusion/
Tags: Europe