Toy library (TREATS)

TREATS can be accessed by everyone who has children or who works with children.

We offer a range of annual memberships:

• £6.50 for an individual
• £9 for childminders
• £20 for groups of less than 50
• £33 for groups with more than 50, schools and other statutory organisations

Hire charges are mostly 50p per item per week, although some larger items are £2 (maximum).

• Musical instruments
• Baby toys and equipment (high chairs, travel cots and stair gates)
• Multi-lingual resources
• Play equipment, (including soft play)
• Role-play toys and construction apparatus
• Sit/ride toys, trikes, scooters
• Sensory toys
• Story sacks, big books and rhymes
• Themed resource boxes for the foundation stage curriculum, including topics such as mini-beasts, seaside, bears, people who help us and feelings
• Information leaflets and boxes for specific circumstances and conditions

Details of all equipment including suggested age groups and colour pictures of each item can be viewed from the related downloads. 

Why buy when you can borrow?

TREATS resources and toys enable you to offer an extended range of play and development opportunities for your child without the expense of buying new toys. It is an ideal solution to those who have children visiting from time to time, allowing you to borrow toys which keep pace with the child's development and interests, and no storage problems!

You may wish to:

• Borrow a number of items for a party, wedding or christening
• Try before you buy
• Use toys to help your child develop a particular skill
• Borrow a range of toys on a particular theme
• Supplement the resources of your group or setting
• Provide a 'surprise' element
• Encourage children to select their own toys and make choices
• Have a different selection of toys for your guests when they come to stay

TREATS can help you!

Members can also buy varied arts and crafts equipment, specifically chosen to offer different ideas and bought direct from wholesalers to provide exceptional value. We keep a regular stock of card, paper, scissors, paint, glue, brushes, stampers and rollers and also have seasonal and other items according to availability. 

View the  Members Craft List [123kb] [PDF] (opens in a new window) to see what is on offer.

How can you access TREATS?

Bere Regis headquarters

You are invited to visit our Bere Regis HQ during our opening hours and select your resources:

• Tuesday 11am-4.30pm
• Wednesday 11am-6pm
• Thursday 11am-4.30pm

Please note the office may be manned at other times and we do have an answer phone for out-of-hours messages.

Our delivery service

We have more than 20 TREATS access points (TAPs) throughout the county where we can deliver pre-ordered toys for members. The service is run on a fortnightly rota for no additional charge.

Dates for delivery [57kb] [PDF] (opens in a new window) to TAPs for 2009.

TAPs are in Beaminster, Blandford, Bincombe Valley, Bovington, Bridport, Broadmayne, Christchurch, Corfe Mullen, Ferndown (two), Gillingham, Lyme Regis, Littlemoor, Portland, Shaftesbury, Sherborne, Sturminster Newton, Swanage, Verwood, Wareham, West Moors, Weymouth and Wimborne.

Newsletter

A Newsletter [116kb] [PDF] (opens in a new window) is produced every two or three months. Find out what is happening in the toy store and any special events that may be planned.

Want to know more?

If you would like to get more involved with the project we are always looking for volunteers to help out and we also have a friends of TREATS group working to raise funds to extend resources.

For further information on equipment, membership or TAPs please contact the TREATS team whose details are below.

• Name: TREATS
  Email: treatstoylibrary@dorsetcc.gov.uk
  Tel: 01929 472937
  Fax: 01929 472938
  Full details for TREATS