Small gel type toy needed

[supportman]

One of the kids is immobile but can grip on to small toys if placed in his hand. He also likes holding on to your finger like a baby would but a spare finger is not always avaliable. He had a small ballon type thing filled with flour and it had a smiley face with rubber hair on it, but it seems to have disapeared. It was a bit big for his hands as well so I am trying to replace it with a toy that is about an inch in diameter by about 3 inches long and of the squidgy gel type variety. Have looked in loads of shops but have not had much luck in finding something suitable.

Does anyone know where I can get something like this ?

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John Lewis have a fiddle toy called a water wiggler, about the size you describe. It is a clear squishy tube filled with colourful fish and blue gel. It costs £1. It doesnt look robust but Ds has not destroyed his yet.

Thanks tobysmumkent, I work in Canterbury so I will have a look in there soon. Just after posting message I left for work and called at my sisters to see if there was anything suitable among the hoards of toys of my nephews. Couldn't find anything gel type but found a little sand filled frog of the right size and a little keyring teddy which was also an ideal size. Asked my sister and she said that he never plays with them and wouldn't miss them, left £10 for him just incase.

When I got to work I put them in his hands and he could hold onto them quite nicely, infact I don't think he let go of them for the whole afternoon and still had them up until bedtime

Will still go to Hawkins and see what else I can find for him.

Magso, I think I have seen what you mentioned, unfortunatly he would be constantly loosing it if it is like I think it is, one of those things that shoot away all the time when holding and playing with them. If not then that might be a nice thing to try.

How's that for being dedicated to my job, spending most of the time between my split shift, looking around shops and trying to find a replacement toy for one of the kids

Hawkins Bazaar is a fantastic place,a veritable treasure trove of stuff for people with SN.
Like you,I spend hours in search of weird and wacky stuff (salt with people with LD) and have kidnapped all sorts of things from my own home much to my family's consternation!

Another good tip is to fill a latex glove with hair gel.Feels great to handle.

I went to Hawkins this morning after work and I found a nice squidgy toy. It is a transparent rubber ball with several small solid rubber balls inside. Lovely and squidgy and can be manipulated into different shapes.

Moondog, are you in Kent? If so then a slight chance we may have come across each other at some point, good chance that we have both worked with the same clients as I do alot of agency work and I estimate that I have worked with atleast 150+ clients.

No
North Wales

As my mum would say... "Brenin Mawr!" Had no idea you were up that way, Moondog.

"The Entertainer" chain are up there with Hawkins' imo. Generally have a "stocking fillers for evil little boys" aisle that turns out to be a wonderland of stim toys. There is one in Crawley, not sure how close that is to you. Also they have a wider than usual range of plastic tat - maybe not appropriate in this case but if I'm trying to replicate the "lights up and plays tunes" toys from school, they're always in The Entertainer, rather than Toys R Us or whatever.

Opps sorry I take it that Hawkins bazzar have a chain of stores then. I have never heard of them before so assumed that the shop in Canterbury was a independant trader.

I only know HB through catalogues.Nowt as grand as a shop up this end.
Poundstretchers are fantastic for stuff like this too.