By Kate Charalambous

As a parent of two young children, I am bracing myself for the annual consumer fest known as Christmas.

I would love my kids to be less reliant on ‘things’. I’d like them, instead, to use their imagination to invent games and to explore and express themselves, but they just don’t get me! These days it’s all about stuff – big, bright, disposable stuff. My five-year-old daughter loves stuff. She sees those adverts for big pink things, or little pink things with lots of bits that will be discarded in two minutes, and she is totally mesmerised. Once they’re unwrapped, however, the initial euphoria is over in ten minutes and I’m left to tidy up all the bits and pieces. Then I hear ‘I’m bored’, or ‘what shall I do now?’ while sitting in her room, surrounded by stimulating toys and games that people have bought for her over the years. I naively reply ‘what do you want to do?’ Then we just look at each other silently, as we both know that the only thing she really enjoys doing, ie punching her younger brother when I’m not looking, is prohibited.

Living in N16, however, is not without its benefits. Businesses and services geared towards children are thriving. I recently came across a new business that begged the question ‘why did no-one think of this earlier?’ I’m talking about the children’s café and party venue That Place on the Corner which recently opened on Newington Green. I was relieved not to find a chaotic, manic space where over-excited children were bouncing off of the walls… instead, I was pleasantly surprised to be entering a toy-free zone, where everyone was interacting and making use of the colourful cushions and small furniture, dressing-up clothes and mirrors – and the children were well behaved, too! It was a serene experience, to find oneself in a calm, child-centred environment. The café also offers a variety of classes for kids, from baby yoga and massage, to music, cookery, crafts and ballet.

The biggest selling point, though, is their food. It is home-cooked, locally sourced, and organic, where possible. They serve dishes such as home-made meatballs and pasta, quality sausages with mash with gravy, and home-made chicken or fish goujons with rice and broccoli. The meat is from Godfrey’s Butcher shop in Highbury – perfect! On weekdays, they even provide story-time at 4.40pm. Now, that is what I call stress-free, guilt-free parenting.

In Church Street, there are several little interesting boutiques.  Born have also been thinking outside the box, with regard to the needs and desires of the N16 frazzled parents set. The shop offers a variety of services such as ‘Pumpkin Pottery’ and ‘Positive Parenting’ (I’ve booked)! Their best idea, though, is the launch of an online social networking site (still under development and online in a couple of months or so), where parents or expectant parents can see what classes or events are on in the area, as well as listings of various therapists and local practitioners. Then there is the immaculately stocked Route 73, which, considering its bijou size, is one of the most delightful children’s shops I have been to. Hamley’s is tacky by comparison. A few doors down is the slightly more beatnik Olive Loves Alfie, where you can pick up something that is as individual as children are.

If French chic is more to your taste, you can see a range of Petit Bateau clothes at Frère Jacques, where you can also get your child’s hair cut on Saturdays. They offer a much-undervalued service of properly measuring your little darling’s feet so you can then adorn them in the latest pair of Ecco shoes. I calculate this to be well worth the extra investment if I take into account the lost hours and stress of negotiating a tube or the North Circular on the tri-annual John Lewis/Clarks shoe run.