FIRE ENGINE, ACTIVITIES PANEL

An activity panel that straps where your child actually is.

Hook-and-loop fasteners attach it to the side of a cot, a playpen or a travel cot at the right height, and that placement is most of why it works. A panel fixed in front of a baby gets used constantly; the same activities loose on the floor get ignored.

Press the buttons, spin the wheel, ring the bell and work the engine's moving parts, with a rescue story in the illustrations. Everything responds instantly, which is what holds attention at nine months, and all of it is pressing, turning, sliding and opening: precisely the fine-motor practice a baby needs at this stage.

Vehicles and rescue play are a reliable way to hold a toddler's attention for longer stretches.

Made from beech wood and polyester rather than moulded plastic, which makes it both better looking in a nursery and considerably quieter.

Lilliputiens is a Belgian brand, founded in 1995 and designed by a team largely made up of parents working alongside early-childhood specialists. Tested to EN71 and ASTM standards and screened for AZO dyes, cadmium and phthalates.

IT STRAPS TO THE COT OR PLAYPEN - Hook-and-loop fasteners attach it at your child's height wherever they spend time. A panel fixed in place gets used far more than a toy on the floor.

BUTTONS, WHEELS, BELLS AND SHUTTERS - Press the buttons, spin the wheel, ring the bell and work the engine's moving parts, with a rescue story in the illustrations. Each element responds instantly, which is what keeps a nine-month-old at it.

BUILT AROUND FINE MOTOR WORK - Pressing, turning, sliding and opening are exactly the movements a baby needs to practise at this stage, and each one here has a reward attached.

WOOD AND FABRIC, NOT PLASTIC - Made from beech wood and polyester, so it looks and feels considerably better than the usual light-up plastic panel, and it is quieter to live with.

Vehicles and rescue play are a reliable way to hold a toddler's attention for longer stretches. Tested to EN71 and ASTM standards and screened for AZO dyes, cadmium and phthalates.

9 months and above

Beech wood and polyester with hook-and-loop attachment straps