Whenever I'm not working, I like to make the most of my time off and as my son is only 3 he still likes to have days out with mummy. When the weather is nice we like to pack up the car with the dogs and head down to the nearest beach which is about 45 minutes away - and I like to take some things that will keep my son occupied for the whole day. One of the things we always take with us are the Early Learning Centre Spade and Rake set which we've had now for about 18 months and which my son makes good use of when at the beach. The ELC Spade and Rake cost me £4.50 when I bought it direct from the website, but it is currently on sale for just £3.00 which I think is a really fantastic price for a quality product.

The spade and rake are both made out of thick sturdy plastic which are definitely designed to be sturdy enough to last and to tolerate a lot of use. They are brightly coloured, with the rake being a lovely deep blue and the spade being a sunny yellow - and I think both colours would appeal to all children of both genders. Both the spade and the rake are designed to be hand held by the child and they are a good length to mean that children are able to manipulate the tools easily. They are both 20cm long and very lightweight and so even when my son was 18 months old he was able to handle these easily and get a good grasp on it.

Both tools cut through the sand easily and the spade is certainly deep enough to pick up a good shovel of sand. He tends to use the spade to fill buckets and sand castle moulds - and to just throw as much sand around as he possibly can.

As the tools are plastic they can be washed when they get caked in sand or mud. They have become a little scratched over the time we've owned them, but not significantly and they are still attractive to look at and very useable.

I would recommend the ELC Spade and Rake for anyone with a young child who likes playing in the mud or in the sand!