A new space where kids and adults can play
An open and inclusive parent-child play space along with games and toys for all ages, plus a communal place to help families feel less isolated, are the services provided by L’Allée Léo, the brand-new “ludothèque” of the Maison de la famille de Saint-Léonard located in the neighbourhood’s library.
The idea is simple: instead of books, L’Allée Léo loans out games and toys and offers a dedicated space for families to play and take part in more structured activities.
Children can discover a whole range of topics to understand the world around them and develop many skills.
The library has a varied collection of games and toys, with something for all age groups and interests. It has cooperative, imagination, imitation, logic, motor skills, observation and other types of games. Children can discover a whole range of topics to understand the world around them and develop many skills.
Launched in spring 2022, L’Allée Léo is growing thanks to the sharing of resources and expertise by many partners from Saint-Léonard’s community and economic networks—a real strength of the project!
- The Maison de la famille has rent-free space in the Wilfrid-Bastien Pavilion, which is owned by the Ville de Montréal.
- The toy library is set up in a free room in the Saint-Léonard library and has its own loan system.
- The borough of Saint-Léonard financially supports the part-time salary of a staff member for the toy library.
- The Desjardins Foundation has invested $25,000 for toy purchases.
- Community agencies involved in the Caravane Jeunesse de Saint-Léonard provide equipment to the toy library for its family game activities in Saint-Léonard’s parks.
- The agency Mains Utiles launched a sewing project with immigrant women to create cute clothes for the toy collection’s dolls.
The project’s many impacts
The toy library fosters the personal development of younger and older children. Socially, it helps families break their isolation. Economically, it provides free materials to families living in poverty. It is also an eco-friendly initiative because it promotes the sharing of quality games and toys.
The Maison de la famille de Saint-Léonard received the 2023 Solidaires Resource Sharing for the L’Allée Léo toy library project.
This award recognizes the significant efforts of an agency, a collective body or a group of organizations to implement good practices or models that promote the pooling and sharing of resources, tools, knowledge or skills to optimize their access to the greatest number of people