London's Business Design Centre was a hive of activity as more than 9,500 early years practitioners and teachers made their way around 173 stands at this month's Early Years and Primary Teaching Exhibition, sponsored by Nursery World and the Times Educational Supplement.
Hungry visitors flocked to taste the new range of Organix nursery snacks. Curly puffs, mini breadsticks and fruit and cereal bars were among the organic treats they snapped up. Marie Van Hagen, brand manager for Organix, said, 'We've also launched the Children's Food Advisory Service, which aims to help professionals feed the children in their care. We hoped to reach 5,000 professionals within 12 months, but we've already far exceeded our expectations.'
New to the show was Raindrops, a Scandinavian company offering a range of colourful outdoor clothes for children. Owner Nikki Horne said, 'There has been a huge amount of interest in outdoor play, and nursery owners are delighted to have come across a quality product that will last for years. Everything is sold at trade price.'
Onlookers were spellbound by Alice Sharp presenting her energetic workshop on the new pre-school educational resource, Watch, Play and Discover with Barney, written in association with practising teachers and education professionals. Katie Rollings, senior brand manager for Barney, said, 'Barney is a fantastic facilitator for learning. We have already gone beyond our target of reaching 4,000 practitioners, and we only sent out the flyers in July.'
The beat went on at another workshop where award-winning children's music writer Janet Channon presented Music and Movement. She said, 'It's about expressing yourself through music. Just take your shoes off and rock.'
Another newcomer to the exhibition was Peter's Edition, a music publishing company which has recently diversified into the early years sector. Its Language Through Music series includes three books, each containing 15 interactive action songs.
Touch Technology launched its innovative security system for nurseries, giving demonstrations of how a simple fingerprint can safeguard door entry. Owner Gary Moinet said, 'The quality of the visitors has been exceptional. Nursery managers and owners have approached me to find out how they can incorporate this system into their nurseries.'
Early years practitioners were queuing up for the free guide Understanding Meningitis, produced by the Meningitis Trust. Its representative said, 'The pack has been really well received, but we've still got thousands of packs to give away. So get in touch.'
Richard Costello from BabyTech, supplying a management software system for nurseries, was thrilled with the response at the show. He said, 'We've sold numerous systems and secured 50 appointments. People are amazed we offer the entire package with a free computer!'
The Big Bus, an interactive educational provider, caused a stir as hundreds of visitors took turns in dressing Bo Bear and Counting Characters on screen.
Neil Griffiths, founder of Storysacks, helped launch Sandscapes, a themed play and learn scenery collection suiting all sizes of sand trays. And for those seeking adventure, Esprit Ski was at hand, recruiting nannies for next year's ski season.
