Community Playthings joins

The Master Paul von der Heyde, third from left, Senior Warden David Dewing, far left, and Junior Warden Ben Burbidge, far right, welcomed new Corporate Member Community Playthings at an admissions ceremony on Thursday 12 December.

Managing Director Jörg Barth, third from right, his son Plant Manager Jacob Barth, second from right, and Head of Design David Paul, second from left, were admitted as Corporate Liverymen.  Community Playthings, based in East Sussex, designs and manufactures solid wood furniture and play equipment for nurseries and primary schools.

All products are designed, made and sold by a community of people that have been caring for children since 1920. Believing that children thrive on imaginative and open-ended play, the company’s first products sold were wooden blocks – the same shape and size it still makes today!

The Master said: “It’s a delight to welcome Community Playthings as our newest Corporate Member and we look forward to working with Jorg, Jacob and David in the coming months. They have a fantastic product and admirable company ethos that we can all learn from.”

Jörg Barth said: “We wanted to get involved with The Furniture Makers’ Company because, as the preeminent representative of the furnishing industry, the Company is uniquely placed to promote the education of young people in the skills required to maintain British furnishing manufacturing into the future.”