Chairperson

Liz has been attending HKTL sessions for the past 5 years and has enjoyed joining in the singing, borrowing, playing, reading and mudpie making across all play sessions, her favourite being the outdoor meet ups.

Liz recently joined the Committee to support the HKTL and ensure it can maintain a sustainable presence in the community. A lifeline to her during the early years of her own children, Liz hopes to ensure the Charity can continue to support young families and build on a reduced waste, society.

In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her husband, young son and daughter and dog Elvis, doing a variety of things such as camping, eating out, and travelling. Individually, she enjoys baking, drinking tea, and likes to exercise by way of running and yoga. Liz also has an allotment which she enjoys tending with the kids.

Treasurer

Alex and her young daughter have been regular attendees at the Toy Library play sessions over the last couple of years – enjoying the wide variety of toys each week, and of course song time! Having had her daughter just prior to lockdown, once the play sessions started back up again, this was a great way to meet other Mums in a similar boat and for the little ones to get used to ‘normal life’ in a safe, caring and fun environment.

Alex looks after all things money-related at The Toy Library – from paying suppliers, monthly cost analysis and the preparation of our annual accounts, to approving budget for new toys and of course, the all important biscuits!

In her spare time, Alex likes to spend time with family and friends, and loves eating out – often combining both of these over in Spain where she regularly visits.

Secretary

Rosie has been using the toy library for over 5 years now and loved going to play sessions with her eldest child when on maternity leave. When she returned to work in 2021, accessing the toy library became tricky. Her second child arrived at the start of the first lockdown in 2020 and it was the joy of Lauren and Rachael's toy deliveries during this time that kept her sane with a busy 2 year old and newborn at home. She is now forever in their debt! Since the toy library began offering click and collect on a weekend, the whole family have been able to take full advantage of the toy library again.

Rosie has worked with children and young people in the charity and education sectors for the last 12 years. She spends her free time...actually she's not sure what free time is but it sounds nice. Her main hobbies are picking up Lego pieces, telling small people to put their shoes on and repeatedly counting Toy Library toy parts into boxes so they are returned in one piece. Also lying down.

Trustee

Sarah is a trustee of the toy library, being persuaded to attend one online meeting during the COVID lockdown and has been helping out ever since.

As a user of the toy library Sarah’s son worked his way through hundreds of toys, some of them multiple times! Using the library to follow his interests meant that she didn't end up with lots of toys he'd lost interest in but always having something new and interesting to explore. The small world toys, science sets and orchard games were big favourites. Sarah also makes use of the party pack, and encourages others to at all opportunities, to help keep waste to a minimum.

As a trustee Sarah enjoys being able to help the toy library be sustainable and ensure it continues to be a great resource for the whole community for years to come - whether that's adopting card payments, writing funding applications or interviewing potential staff in a cupboard it's never dull!

In what little free time is left after dealing with work and the hectic calendar of kids activities Sarah enjoys playing cricket, coaching kids football and generally having fun with her family.

Trustee

Laura worked as a primary school teacher before becoming a stay at home mum with her ever growing brood of three young children! She worked in the early years foundation stage and key stage 1 and fully understands the importance of learning through play in the early years.

Laura attends many HKTL sessions with her two youngest children, who love exploring the fun and creative ways to play each time. These sessions are a great way to meet other parents and children. So when the opportunity arrose to become a trustee, she was more than happy to provide her support to the charity.

In her spare time Laura enjoys reading, baking and exercising. She enjoys exploring the outdoors and going on adventures with her family at the weekend.

Trustee

Rachael used to run the Toy Library alongside Lauren and reluctantly left for pastures new. Apart from she couldn’t really leave so became a Trustee instead!

Rachael moved on to work at a local primary school, continuing to develop young minds in the community. She also enjoys reading, singing in a choir & being outdoors as well as spending time with her own children.

Trustee

Emma has been a member of the Toy Library since her twin boys were 8 months old. As a new mum to babies born in the pandemic, the play sessions were a safe haven to start venturing out and have been a source of firm friendships for Emma and husband Tom, as well as the library giving their boys an amazing array of toys to suit each stage of their growth.

Emma joined the committee to give something back to the charity which has played a big part in her first years of being a mum. With a background in marketing and communication, Emma enjoys working on the library's social media and helping to spread the word about the charity within the local community.

In her spare time Emma enjoys running, playing cricket, gardening and having lots of outdoorsy adventures with her family.

Trustee

Hello! My name is Vivien Jaksics, I am from Hungary (Budapest). I have years of experience working in the UK HE sector, where I supported a high number of cultural events and fundraising projects as well as student extra-curricular activities. Now, I work for York St John University's Student Recruitment and Widening Participation team. I have joined HKTL, because I appreciate the idea of providing sustainable, high- quality and accessible early educational tools to all members of the community. My son loved the play sessions too and we regularly borrow toys. Our favourites are the Story Sacks and Small Worlds- check them out in the library catalogue if you have a chance!