British Made Toys and Games (as usual in no particular order):
Squidge & Pip intend to sell British made sensory teething toys. Launching in March 2016, they are one of my twitter followers. Trade only. their website is now up and running and on there they say “Squidge & Pip are proudly and reassuringly MADE IN BRITAIN from the safest medical grade silicone, which is rigorously tested to high British standards – http://www.squidgeandpip.com
“Stickibox offers a range of cardboard box craft kits to unlock a childs creativity and to use their imaginations while at play. Made in the UK” – quoting from their twitter tagline – http://www.stickibox.com
Newmakers kids contemporary products are designed and manufactured in Devon – children’s rocking horses, rolling horses and furniture – http://newmakers.com
House of Marbles sell marbles, games, toys, and puzzles. Most products are made in China, however their Teign Valley Glass products are made in Britain. They say on their website “all of our Teign Valley Glass products are made in the UK. Most other products are made in China…” Teign Valley Glass products available at the House of Marbles website include Marbles, Banister Balls (like a huge marble for stair banisters and balconies) , Glass Robins (robin bird-shaped paperweights) and Single Stem Vases. If you search for ‘Teign Valley’ on the House of Marbles website you can filter to just UK Made Teign Valley products. The glassworks was set up in Teignmouth, Devon, England in 1981 to make specialist handmade marbles for House of Marbles and have since diversified into other glassware – https://www.houseofmarbles.com – http://teignvalleyglass.com
Stevenson Brothers are exclusive rocking horse makers who produce rocking horses in their Kent based workshop. British Family visited their workshop in February 2016 – http://www.stevensonbros.com
Hornby / Airfix / Humbrol Paints / Tri-ang / Meccano / Dinky Toys / Scalextric / Corgi Toys – Lines Bros Ltd / Rovex Plastics Ltd were once all manufactured in the UK and most of their products were made in the UK until 1999 when they shipped production out to China. From 2012 they have tried to some extent to move some production back to the UK. I understand Airfix Quickbuild kits are made at the Plastech factory in Sussex now – Plastech have a factory in the UK and use another in China, but most Airfix products are Chinese made still. British Family write (in February 2016) about how the company is near to collapse. The Rovex works in Margate ceased production in late 1998. Airfix say on their website that “the whole QUICK BUILD range is manufactured here in the UK and features some of the most iconic vehicles ever constructed!” – other Airfix products are still made in China. “In 2012 Humbrol moved over 60% of its manufacturing back to the UK from China to improve supply, and ensure high quality standards continue to be met. Humbrol’s well-established and most popular range of enamel paint as well as their new acrylic sprays are now produced in London and Manchester” according to their website. Humbrol enamel paints and finishing products are now made by Cricklewood-based Rustins, established in 1924. Humbrol’s acrylic spray paints are made in Manchester but I don’t know by whom. Humbrol’s adhesives are made in India and other Humbrol products are foreign made. Humbrol’s Hull factory closed in around 2006. Hornby trains, Corgi toy cars, Scalextric and Hornby’s other brands remain made in China. Airfix closed Meccano Ltd’s flagship Binns Road factory in Liverpool in November 1979 and today the Meccano brand is owned by Canadian company Spin Master and does not manufacture in the UK. Dinky Toys was a brand name for die-cast miniature vehicles produced by Meccano Ltd and were made in England and France. The Dinky trade-name eventually became part of Matchbox International Ltd in the late 1980s. Matchbox went bankrupt in 1982 and the brand name has had various owners since then and is now part of US company Mattel and Matchbox no longer makes anything in the UK. Corgi was the name of a range of die-cast toy vehicles produced by Mettoy Playcraft Ltd, with production taking place in Northampton, Swansea and Leicester. Corgi went bankrupt in 1983 and was re-launched in 1984 and in 1989 became part of US company Mattel. Corgi now belongs to AIrfix / Hornby and no longer makes anything in the UK – http://www.airfix.com – https://www.humbrol.com
Airfix Quickbuild Spitfire. Made in the UK. Front of box view. Photograph by author 29 June 2017.
Airfix Quickbuild Spitfire. Made in the UK. Label detail. Photograph by author 29 June 2017.
Airfix QuickBuild Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Designed and Made in the UK. On display in a shop in Akihabara in Toyko, Japan. Photograph by author 1 February 2018. This shop in Akihabara in Toyko, Japan also had standard Airfix mode kits for sale but these were made in countries like India and not made in the UK.
British made Humbrol paints on display in a shop in Akihabara in Toyko, Japan. Photograph by author 1 February 2018. Humbrol Enamel front view.
British made Humbrol paints on display in a shop in Akihabara in Toyko, Japan. Photograph by author 1 February 2018. Humbrol Enamel rear view with the words “Made in the UK”.
Vintage made in England Britains Land Rover toy vehicle, with figure inside and a roller which attaches to the rear.
Vintage made in England Britains Land Rover toy vehicle, with figure inside and a roller which attaches to the rear. Underside view.
It’s not exactly toys, but collectors model cars: Brooklin Models and Lansdowne Models are whitemetal models that are available in specialised retailers that cater for model collectors all over the world. As far as I can gather they are all made in Bath, England, but you should check before buying. Specialising in models of American cars these model cars were originally made in America but now seem to be made in England and since 1993 they have also produced some models of British cars. Also available via the companies online shop and other stockists are listed on their website – http://www.brooklinmodels.co.uk/brooklin_custom
Carddies are little Card People to colour in and play with for hours and are made in the UK – http://www.carddies.com
Carddies London Set. Made in the UK.
Gibsons Games, founded in 1919, make traditional board games, jigsaw puzzles and playing cards, for adults and children. Their puzzle artwork is printed in the UK and some of their puzzles are made in the UK. Their games are mostly, if not all, made in the Far East. Gibsons is also a distributor for the Austrian games manufacturer ‘Piatnik’ so some of their games, being Piatnik games, are made there and this includes their playing cards which are all foreign made. They told me this information in a email in October 2015. They do give country of origin information about their products on their website and they do not always put country of origin on the boxes, so you will need to ask them where a particular product is made. However, products that are made in the UK are clearly labelled as so on the boxes. Mostly their products are foreign made, despite the wording “British since 1919” on the bottom on their website front page and on their actual products. There’s a review of some Gibsons games and jigsaw puzzles here – http://gibsonsgames.co.uk
Some Gibsons puzzles are labelled as published in the UK – it is not clear what this means if anything. It could possibly mean foreign made or it could mean foreign made but printed in the UK? Photograph by author.
Some Gibsons puzzles are still made in the UK and are labelled as such. Photograph by author.
Gibsons Peeping Tom cat themed jigsaw puzzles, 500 pieces. Made in the UK and labelled as such. Photograph by author. Front of box view.
Gibsons Peeping Tom cat themed jigsaw puzzles, 500 pieces. Made in the UK and labelled as such. Photograph by author. Rear of box view.
Gibsons Peeping Tom cat themed jigsaw puzzles, 500 pieces. Made in the UK and labelled as such. Photograph by author. Rear of box view, close up of country of origin label.
Wentworth jigsaw puzzles, founded in 1994, are made in Wiltshire, England, including the backing board which is also made in the UK for them. Their puzzles often contain ‘whimsies’ and are cut by laser. They also do some shaped puzzles and will make puzzles from your photographs too. Puzzles are available from their website and selected and own brand puzzles are available from the National Portrait Gallery, National Gallery, Blackwell’s, Sherlock Holmes Museum, The Charles Dickens Museum, The Wallace Collection, St. Paul’s Cathedral and Arty Globe – all in London – and also some National Trust properties around the UK stock Wentworth puzzles of own images and they are available in some John Lewis stores. Their website front page showed the Made in Britain logo on 16th July 2017 – https://www.wentworthpuzzles.com
On the box of this Micro Oliver Twist Asks for More Puzzle by Wentworth Jigsaw Puzzles at the Charles Dickens Museum you can see the words “Made in the United Kingdom”.
Just Jigsaws Ltd. (formerly known as WJ & J Trowsdale) was originally based in Luton, Bedfordshire and moved to Alfreton, Derbyshire in 1989. They believe they are “the only company left in England specialising in making our own hand cut wooden jigsaws.”and they tell us on their website “Hand cut jigsaws since 1973. We are specialist manufacturers of hand cut wooden jigsaws for children. All of our puzzles are made at our factory located in Alfreton, Derbyshire, England”. In January 2018 Just Jigsaws announced that they are taking over some of the Willis Toys range and that these will be made in Britain. I assume this refers to some of the jigsaw puzzles Willis Toys sell. Willis Toys Limited was founded in 1973 as a manufacturer and supplier of wooden jigsaw puzzles and educational toys and games. Willis Toys do have a small factory in Bury St. Edmonds in Suffolk but the bulk of their products are currently made in China, so this is good news for British puzzle manufacturing – http://justjigsaws.co.uk
JHG Jigsaws Ltd was founded in 1997. In 2008 the company started manufacturing for themselves. They tell us on their website “JHG Jigsaws Ltd is one of the UK’s few remaining jigsaw puzzle manufactures. Based at our converted farm premises in the beautiful countryside of Dorset, we now manufacture a wide range of jigsaw puzzles. “Made in England” on the boxes means just that, and we use materials that are as eco friendly as we can find. Our puzzle board is made from recycled card as are our puzzle boxes. The paper for the print is FSC certified and our Glue is starch based, made especially for us. Where possible we try to “Buy British” for the other components of our puzzles. This, we hope, all helps to reduce our carbon footprint.” their jigsaws are available from their website – https://jhgpuzzles.co.uk
The House of Puzzles used to make their jigsaw puzzles in the UK, like the one pictured below. I have no idea if they still manufacture in the UK as they do not bother to give country of origin information on their website, suggesting perhaps they are now foreign made.
A vintage House of Puzzles Landie jigsaw. Made in the UK. Photograph by author.
A vintage House of Puzzles Landie jigsaw. Made in the UK. Label detail. Photograph by author.
Orchard Toys. Made in the UK for kids aged 18mths to 12 yrs. Fun and educational.
Orchard Toys Shopping List game. Manufactured in the UK.
Little Bean has a range of products that includes toys, clothing and nursery items, for newborn to aged 5 years, all made in the UK – http://www.little-bean.co.uk
Shannon Games create, design and manufacture original board and gift games. Everything they produce is designed and manufactured in the United Kingdom. Their board games are available on their website and they also offer bespoke board games and will manufacture a board game you want made – http://www.shannongames.com
City of Zombies is a board game that is made in Britain – http://www.cityofzombies.com
Brian Clegg manufacturers a range of trikes, scooters and other metal toys for the educational market and has done so for over 35 years. They come assembled and ready for play and are made in England. Wholesale only. Brian Clegg also make arts and craft products, the bulk of which are made in the UK. You’ll need to ask if the art products you want are UK made before buying – http://www.brianclegg.co.uk
J & L Randall Ltd was a British toy manufacturer based in Potters Bar, England. The company used two trading names: Merit for general toys and SEL (Signalling Equipment Ltd) for technical toys, e.g. electric motors, steam engines and student microscopes. In 1978 the company was bought by Letraset and has since closed. Letraset, having previously been based in Ashford, Kent, has since moved its operations to France having been brought out by another company.
Vintage J & L Randall Ltd of Potters Bar, England Merit Chemistry Set, Made in England, 50 Safety Tested Experiments. Photograph by author 27 September 2019.
For Arts and Crafts materials please see https://ukmade.wordpress.com/2013/05/24/are-the-office-supplies-and-stationery-in-your-workplace-made-in-the-uk/
Also please click here for British made sports balls and here for British made Darts, Dart Boards and Dart Accessories.
For teddy bears, please see https://ukmade.wordpress.com/2013/08/08/merrythought-handmade-teddy-bears-made-in-england-british-bears/
“My Merrythought Bear“. Made in England.
Redwood Green Playing Cards by Richard Edward Limited are made in the UK. Richard Edward specialise in the manufacture of games cards, trading cards and playing cards. Richard Edward are now based in Canvey Island, Essex and are now owned by Belgian company Cartamundi. Since the takeover it appears that the Richard Edwards and Redwood Cards website and twitter have not been updated and as of May 2019 they no longer exist. Cartamundi UK still list their location as being in Canvey Island in Essex on their website as of May 2019, but it is not clear from their website whether any production remains in the UK. The Richard Edwards and Green Playing Cards brands appear to have been discontinued.
Redwood Green Playing Cards by Richard Edward Made in the UK.
Redwood Green Cards recycled playing cards.
Redwood Green Cards. Pack rear view and base view (showing the words “made in the UK). Photograph by author.
Redwood Green Cards recycled playing cards unpacked.
Richard Edward also make (or at least used to make) some of the Waddington playing cards but some Waddingtons playing cards are also made overseas and Waddington playing cards no longer state country of origin on the packets, stopping you from making informed decisions about whether to purchase in light of provenance and sustainability. Waddingtons are now owned by Winning Moves. Winning moves tell me they used to be made in the UK, but that they have moved production over to a factory in Austria.
Vintage Waddingtons Number 1 made in Britain playing cards. Photograph by author 11 April 2019
Vintage Waddingtons Number 1 made in Britain playing cards. Photograph by author 11 April 2019. Made in Britain label view.
WHSmith have a long British heritage but everything I have seen recently in WHS has been expensive and made abroad (even some of their books!). WHSmith now no longer label their own brand products with their country of origin which I assume means they are are NOT made in the UK anymore. Below is a picture of an old pack of British made cards from WHSmith.
VINTAGE BRITISH MADE DELESI PLAYING CARDS. WHSMITH. LINEN FINISH. I don’t think you’ll find any British made playing cards in Smith’s these days.
Trakke sell a pack of playing cards which they label as “British made”. They say of these playing cards on their website “This British made poker deck is printed on heavy, plastic-coated card and features a contour motif from the Ben Nevis area on the reverse. ” Trakke are better known for their British bags and rucksacks but if these playing cards really are UK made that would be great – http://trakke.co.uk
Wicksteed Playgrounds is the leading manufacturer & supplier of playground equipment in the UK. Wicksteed has been designing; manufacturing; installing; landscaping and maintaining playgrounds since 1918. Additionally they make outdoor fitness equipment, multi use games areas and impact absorbing surfaces; as well as outdoor furniture and fencing. They supply to local authorities; architects; schools; builders; holiday and leisure parks and the community. They also own Fawns playgrounds. Fawns supply and install outdoor play equipment, specialising in round log play equipment. Wicksteed’s factory is in Kettering. Fawns Recreational Services Ltd are based Farnborough and I get the impression they have a factory there. Please check, but possibly most or even all of their products are made in the UK – http://www.wicksteed.co.uk – http://www.fawns.co.uk
Escor Toys manufacture a range of branded wooden toys aimed at the pre-school to under eights market. Dorset Enterprises and Escor Toys form Bournemouth Borough council’s workshop employing people with disabilities. Everything they produce is made at their factory in Bournemouth.
http://www.publicprocurementonline.co.uk/profiles/d/dorset_escor/escor.htm
Update 28.4.13 – Both Escor Toys and Deckchairs UK are likely to close shortly (and indeed may have already closed) because Bournemouth Council are withdrawing their support. How sad.
Further update, both Escor Toys and Deckchairs UK ceased trading on 31st March 2013.
Escor wooden Pullalong toy. Made in England.
For carrying model cars and boats and the like, Raven System make special model carrying bags in the UK – http://www.moducarry.org.uk
Scooterpeg is an innovative high quality prolypropelyne peg to hang your kids scooter on which is made in the UK and suitable for use both indoors and out – http://www.scooterpeg.co.uk
Urofoam (ukstressballs) in Cheshire, founded in 1988, make stressballs in England. Not just stress balls but stress balls in a wide variety of custom shapes. They sell these as a promotional items to companies for marketing campaigns. Urofoam say they are “the leading manufacturer and distributer of stressballs and foam balls in the western world…” Urofoam make foam footballs, indoor and outdoor foam sports balls, footbeds for shoes, car components, operating theatre equipment, medical furniture, playground equipment, baby changing mats, branded bar furniture, wheelchair cushions, mobile phone holders and specialised foam mouldings. At one point they also made shoes (as Softwalker Ltd from 2001 to closing the operation down in 2010). They say they “…produce everything in-house..”. They say that they are the only manufacturer of stress balls in Europe and they say “our stressballs are manufactured completely in the UK for maximum quality.”. Their factory is in Askam-in-Furness in Cumbria. They are also the maker of the gripsta mobile phone holder or stand, which they say is “completely UK manufactured”. They describe this as a fun and squidgy phone accessory that fits iPhone, HTC, Blackberry, Samsung, LG, Nokia and all other leading smartphone models. The Gripsta is a stand for your iPhone, other mobile phone or iPod made of foam (the same foam you’d find in a stress ball.). I should imagine it is great for watching films, as a mobile phone shoulder rest, and as a soft grip mobile phone holder, for use at home or in the office. In bright colours, Gripsta could also be used as a car mobile phone holder I think. It measures approximately 100mm x 70mm x 55mm and I imagine it would fit over any bumper and screen protector you might be using. On their website they say “Gripsta is a new gadget made in our own factory here in the UK” – http://ukstressballs.co.uk – http://gripsta.co.uk
UK Stressballs (ukstressballs) stress balls made in the UK.
Can anyone help me to add more UK toy and game manufacturers here please?
Toys and Games made in the UK. British toys. UK made Toys. UK Made Games. Great British Games.
ukmade - UK Made Products - BRITISH MADE 
Hello-Would love our UK designed made Carddies to be featured here! Please let me know how to send you more info.
You can email me at ukmade@hotmail.co.uk. Happy to feature you here. If you mail me that will remind me! Happy New Year.
The Teign glass marbles are like £40 each! What happened to the good old bag of marbles that kids could get at the toy store? Like, with a kid’s allowance money?
These are some URLs of UK toy-makers:
https://games-workshop.com/
https://kitronik.co.uk/
https://bitcadearcade.com/
https://monkmakes.com/
https://barenakedwoodcompany.com/
https://www.sussextoycraft.co.uk/
http://www.croglintoys.com/
https://noahsarktoys.co.uk/wooden_arks/
http://www.wendoverwood.com/
http://www.tegidtoys.wales/
https://www.thimbleanddoll.co.uk/