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What do our toys 'do'?

I’ve been asked a lot in recent weeks, “what do your toys do?”. This question is often followed by “do they wind up?” or “do they have batteries?”.

The short answer for the second two questions? No.

And there are a number of reasons for this.

The first is environmental. As you’ll no doubt know by now, our toys are made from 100% recycled plastic milk bottles, and they’re fully recyclable. If toys have metal parts, bolts or batteries (as would be required for wind-up or battery-operated toys), it means they can’t be recycled via kerbside recycling. It’s so important for us that our toys can be repurposed to something else once they’re finished with, which is why we’ve made sure they’re fully recyclable.

The second is that our toys are built for open-ended play, which is an important part of a child’s development. Electronic toys often have a prescribed format for children to play with them, which may limit their creativity and the way they engage with the toy. However, open-ended play doesn’t put limitations on the way a child engages – they can express themselves freely and use their imagination, which is so important for building the ability to think creatively.

Playing in the bath

So what do they do?

Our toys actually have some pretty cool functionality – in our Reef Express Bath toy set, the lid comes all the way off, the propeller spins through the water, and the Reef Rescue Crew each clip in and out of their own position in the submarine.

But beyond that, it’s up to the children how they play with the toys. Our toys are intentionally open-ended as we want them to stimulate creative, imaginative play. Water is a great tool for open-ended play, and adding our Reef Rescue Crew characters gives children a great opportunity to create their own games and stories. We’ve already had some of our customers tell us about the amazing games their children have created with their toys, taking them on adventures to save the Great Barrier Reef!

We love creating toys that are good for our planet, but also help children develop skills that will be so important throughout their lives.

If you’re interested in taking a closer look at the Reef Express Bath toy set, click here.