The art trolley at Tate Britain is where children pick up activity sheets, collect materials and go off into the galleries to make responses to the art collection. The previous trolley had been in use for ten years and it was time for a rethink. We were commissioned to design a new trolley that would be playful and engaging as well as eye-catching in the gallery space.

We designed a child-sized trolley that was self-service so children could help themselves. The trolley is logical with each side given over to a single activity – the worksheet is displayed/dispensed from a vertical tray and related materials are held in recessed compartments.

The trolleys are made from birch plywood with a Formica laminate – one in blue and one in orange – and each is accompanied by a bin to hold larger items.

To accompany the art trolley we designed some stickers which are given to children who use it. Many different rhyming messages relating to art and design are used (such as string thing, straw draw, picture mixture, lick stick) along with a variety of different patterned borders. Bags which look as if they are covered in stickers can be used to carry materials or take things home in.