Storing Tuff Spot Mats

Most FS/KS1 classrooms that I've seen in recent years, have a tuff spot/builders tray (large circular/hexagonal plastic tray) that has all manner of uses. Catalogues like TTS sell a huge range of mats to go inside it related to different topics. I've been lucky enough over the last few years to build up a bit of a collection of them as they are generally quite cheap and my children enjoy using them as a basis for small world play.

My only problem with them is the difficulty of storage as they are quite large. I always store mine rolled up simply in an old box which regularly falls over! I thought that all my problems had been solved when, in  the most recent TTS catalogue, I saw a specially designed trolley with a square mesh at the top and a tray at the bottom, allowing you to put one mat in each slot. "Great", I thought but at almost £40 I was a little dubious- I could get an awful lot with that money.

Here's the TTS version-

and this was my much cheaper solution-

It came from the ESPO catalogue for about £10 and is very sturdy. It was flat pack, but incredibly easy to put together. It will hold at least 20 mats and each compartment is the perfect size, meaning that even when the children roll the mats, slightly dodgily, they will still fit. Next plan is to get the kids to decorate it a bit as it is a bit plain at the moment but for 1/4 of the price, I can live with that! Anything for a bargain and I'm sure they'll enjoy it.