The annual Outdoor Toy Awards is making a comeback in June to crown some of the best outdoor toys for active play.

Outdoor Toy Awards 2023

Once more, the Outdoor Toy Awards will invite kid testers to put the very best outdoor toys through their paces. The Toyology and the Kidzcoolit network will oversee the media and social coverage of the awards and ten, toys will be crowned as the must-haves for get-out, get-up and get-active play.

Last year, the Outdoor Toy Awards had solid success with media coverage of the event, ranging from trade and parenting press to national consumers both online and in print. This year, the goal is to reach far and wide to further improve media spread.

Nick Gibbs-McNeil, from Kidzcoolit, said: “We’re into our seventh year gathering all that is fun to do in the garden, and the support for our efforts is stronger than ever to highlight this important category. The testing involves a host of youngsters and helps us judge the products giving a far more authentic experience. They play, we observe and, as ever, we’re excited at the impending chaos these awards always bring and seeing the kid testers having a blast.

“Post pandemic, families have embraced being outside and outdoor play more than ever. You don’t know what you’ve lost until it’s taken away from you. Unlike any other event, The Outdoor Toy Awards celebrates the best of play in parks and gardens. As well as encouraging families to enjoy the world outside of their front and back doors. We’ve always been very proud to be involved with this event.”

The are 10 categories, as follows:

· Climbing & Adventure

· Sport & Splash Fun

· Outdoor Games

· Science & Nature

· Ride-On

· Trampolines

· Pre-School Play

· Battle & Blaster Toys

· Houses, Tents & Hideaways

· Flying Toys

The #OTA23 will be working to secure coverage across print, online and broadcast media.

“Outdoor play is essential for children’s development and wellbeing,” commented Nicole Sparrow, marketing communications manager at Learning Resources. “The Outdoor Toy Awards are a great way to get kids excited about going outside to explore, play, learn and have lots of active fun, and Learning Resources is delighted to be part of this year’s awards once again.”

Lucy Figg, senior marketing executive, Zuru UK & Ireland, said: “We’re champions of outdoor play, which is why we’re big supporters of the Outdoor Toy Awards. We love to see children of all ages enjoying themselves outside – getting creative, getting active and having a blast, so it’s great to have these awards which honour products helping to facilitate this.”

For more information and to receive an entry form, email: peter@toyology.co.uk.