Play to Thrive – an online pathway to play-based therapies in Shropshire (of which I am a founding member) – can run stalls at local events providing examples of the Play Therapy toolkit, and a space to talk about children’s mental health. We have found that the sand trays in particular are very popular with children (and adults) of all ages.

I attended the Shropshire Kids Festival this weekend with colleagues from Play to Thrive, sponsored by Clarkes Solicitors who kindly paid our entrance fee. We had an amazing time engaging with nearly 70 families discussing play therapy, children’s mental health and emotional well-being.

We had sand trays out which meant we were very popular and continuously busy. Many parents commented on the fact that their children were more interested in the sand trays than the massive array of exciting activities across the rest of the site. We also had bubble games, a sock puppet copy cat activity, and colouring activities. We didn’t get to do as many parent child interaction games as we hoped, but many parents simply seemed thankful of a space to sit and talk.

We were amazed at how open parents were and how much we got to discuss our new network, play-based therapies, supporting children and the concerns about mental health services. We had some tears and some really heartfelt discussions, some harrowing stories and got to meet some very brave children. We talked to teachers, mental health workers, SENCos and headteachers too.

​We were utterly exhausted by the end of it all, but feel it was a real success. We’re really hoping to go back again next year.