Play Hub Explained
TOY for Inclusion is the gateway to education and care for many children of disadvantaged communities. The project has created eight Play Hubs for young children in the EU which have obtained extraordinary results:
1. Improved the transition experience of Romani children to schools.
2. Improved children’s preparedness for formal education.
3. Increased trust of Roma communities in the local services.
The project strengthens integration and social cohesion by bringing children and families from different backgrounds together.
Over 4,000 children involved in our activities
A particular focus is put on Romani, migrant and socially disadvantaged children. By creating Play Hubs at local level, TOY for Inclusion provides opportunities for children, adults and communities to integrate and develop. For more detailed results, download our brochure here.
What is a TOY for inclusion Play Hub?
The TOY for Inclusion Play Hubs organize play-based activities designed to help children develop necessary skills and knowledge for formal education. The Local Action Teams, responsible for each Play Hub, mobilize local communities around young children and organize intergenerational activities involving older adults with and without Roma background. Activities can take place in the Hubs but also in other settings in the communities, such as community centers, libraries, parks, squares, preschools, health centers.
The Play Hubs also function as parenting support hub where parents and grandparents can visit with their young children/grandchildren to borrow toys and books, and at the same time learn about how play supports children’s learning development and access information about other child and family-focused services and events in the community. Play Hubs are aimed to serve as centers for the community and reach beyond education and care, primarily by offering space for activities dealing with health, nutrition, etc.
TOY for Inclusion is active in eight countries: Croatia, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Netherlands, Slovakia, Slovenia and Turkey. You can read more about each Play Hub here.
The Play Hubs are very successful in:
1.Bringing different communities together.
2.Building parenting skills.
3.Improving cooperation between the civil society and local agencies.
The Romani Early Years Network (REYN) and TOY project together
REYN and Together Old and Young (TOY) joined forces to create TOY for Inclusion. The project addresses increasingly worrying issues like discrimination and segregation that oppress Romani and migrant children from very early age.
Building on the success of the TOY project, TOY for Inclusion combines two approaches: it promotes intergenerational learning opportunities between older adults and young children as well as community-based early childhood education and care (ECEC).
Project partners
TOY for Inclusion is coordinated by International Child Development Initiatives – ICDI (NL). Other partners are the International Step-by-Step Association – ISSA (NL), Dublin City University, Akromfed (Mediterranean Roma Associations Federation), the Salvation Army Netherlands and six members of REYN: Educational Research Institute – ERI (Slovenia), Open Academy Step by Step – OASS (Croatia), Centre for Education Initiatives – CEI (Latvia), Wide Open School – WOS (Slovakia), Associazione 21 Luglio (Italy) and Partners Hungary Foundation.
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The European Commission support for the production of this publication does not constitute an endorsement of the contents which reflects the views only of the authors, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
