HASBRO BRINGS FAMILIES TOGETHER TO PLAY ACROSS THE UK 

WEDNESDAY 23 September, saw Schoolfriend.etc host an after-school club at Tidemill Primary School, London with a difference. Not only did children attend but their families did too, as the club held its very own Hasbro Family Game Night!

The event was organised as part of toy manufacturer Hasbro’s mission to help parents make an occasion within their hectic schedules to spend some quality time with their children, whilst revisiting the boardgames of their youth.

Hasbro and after-school club charity Schoolfriend.etc organised the evening as part of the national Hasbro Family Game Night initiative. Running from the 14 September to 18 October, the initiative aims to create an occasion for loved ones to come together and interact through playing their favourite Hasbro boardgames.

The initiative will be carried throughout Schoolfriend.etc clubs across the UK, as Hasbro helps to recreate the event country wide by giving boardgames to schools in; London, Middlesex, Stoke-on-Trent, Nottingham, Birmingham, Surrey and Sheffield

Spokesperson for Hasbro Craig Wilikins said: “Family time is really important, we sometimes forget to spend time with those closest to us.  Family Game Night is a great excuse to get the whole family together, invite the extended family or even the neighbours round and make an occasion of playing a board game.”

Even television star Amanda Holden struggles to spend quality time with her daughter Lexi due to work commitments. Amanda said: “The hardest thing about being a working mum is juggling work with spending quality time with Lexi. I sometimes feel guilty about not spending enough time with her and I’m constantly making sure I make time and the most out of every precious moment we do get. I’m very lucky that my family is very close, so when we are all together, rather than watch TV, we tend to play games and interact with each other.

“Holding a Family Game Night is a great way to create a family occasion and help build relationships between family members through playing board games - it’s a chance for children to learn, as well as parents to learn more about their children, while at the same time having loads of fun!”

Playing games is also a great way to fine tune children’s useful skills such as patience, teamwork and turn taking. Not to mention an economically savvy way to reconnect during the credit crunch!

Spokesperson for Schoolfriend.etc Yvonne Conlon, said:

“We are very excited to be involved in the initiative. Boardgames provide a staple part of our activity in our after-school clubs, they are a way for children to interact away from television and computer screens whilst learning some very important basic skills.

The evening is a great way for families to interact together, it has created an opportunity for the parents of Tidemill primary school to relive their fondest gaming childhood memories whilst investing time into their own children’s development.”

Games featured in the evening included family favourites MONOPOLY, Jenga, Connect 4, Cluedo, Guesstures and Pictureka.