Advocacy
Speaking up for reputable toymakers and those who play with our toys.Â
Our advocacy work
The BTHA is the voice of reputable UK toy manufacturers. We work hard to protect and promote the interests of our membership of responsible toy makers at a national, European, and international level. Our advocacy work encompasses policy, public affairs, and campaigns.
Our membership of responsible toy makers invest heavily in making safe, quality toys for children to play with and enjoy, and our work aims to protect them from the issues caused by illegal toy traders.
Some of the issues we represent our members on
- Toy safety
- Environmental issues
- Responsible marketing to children and families
- Data protection and privacy
- Connected toys
- Combatting counterfeit toys
- Market access
Our campaigns
Still Toying With Children’s Safety
Still Toying with Children’s Safety aims to identify and stop the sale of unsafe toys being sold by third-party sellers via online marketplaces. We believe that online marketplaces should ensure all toys that are available to purchase are safe and we have been calling for a law change to stop dangerous toys being sold in the UK.
Make Time 2 Play®
Make Time 2 Play® aims to highlight the importance of play in child development, and the contribution toys make in enriching children’s play experiences. We do this through our Make Time 2 Play® campaign where we build strong evidence on the benefits of play, and we team up with experts and play ambassadors to offer parents and carers help and advice to fit more play into children’s lives.
National
We work with government, regulators and enforcement bodies in the UK to put forward the interests of British toy makers to ensure that we have the best possible regulatory regime which protects both responsible toy businesses and the children that play with our products.
In all the advocacy work we do we consider the interests of children and their families and their ability to learn through playing with our members’ toys. In doing so we are constantly monitoring legislative issues on behalf of our members to identify and address opportunities and threats to the toy business. We advocate from the beginning of the legislative process to ensure that the industry’s position is understood when new rules are being created, right through to implementation to ensure these rules are properly and fairly enforced.
European
We remain an active member of Toy Industries of Europe (TIE) which brings together national toy associations from across Europe as well as toy companies. Collaboratively, we work to engage with the European institutions on a multitude of legislative issues which impact toy businesses. We continue to work with European colleagues and policy makers in the changing European marketplace. The BTHA has been active in identifying impacts to the toy business as a result of Brexit and has engaged with politicians to highlight those issues, as well as finding solutions for members and offering advice and training for companies to understand the business impacts.
The BTHA, through direct membership, and via members and experts, will continue to participate in standards committees and expert groups wherever those avenues remain open to UK toy industry.
International
We monitor the global toy landscape on behalf of members. We are a member of the International Council of Toy Industries (ICTI), with a membership made up of toy trade associations from across the globe. We come together twice a year to identify emerging threats and opportunities and to share best practice from around the world.
