The issue with toddlers is that they often want to run before they can walk - both literally and figuratively.
They want to be independent but don’t have the skills yet which can be an entertaining and frustrating time. This extends to mealtimes which can be a very messy affair, right from the beginning of the weaning phase.
When you first give your baby solid food, you’ll probably give them a mixture of things they can eat with their hands and others that they can practice scooping with a spoon to feed themselves. It’s normal for most of the food to miss their mouths and wind up on the floor, but hey, that’s all part of the fun.
For parents who struggle with mess and letting go of control, this stage in parenting can be stressful.
There’s a huge range of products on the market to help you feed your child or to help them with self-feeding. In the early stages of weaning a soft spoon is recommended while your baby’s hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills are still developing. As your child grows you will want to introduce a fork at mealtimes because it will enable them to prong their food and bring it to their mouth. Most forks are light and designed for small hands and could be made from melamine, bamboo or silicone which will be safe for your infant to use, especially if they only have a few teeth at this point.
Once your child is two years old you can introduce children’s stainless steel cutlery for them to use. The forks, spoons and knives will be small but the metal will allow them to further develop their fine motor skills and become more confident in self-feeding.
Parenting expert Kirsty Ketley says: “It's important to remember that learning to feed yourself with cutlery is a tricky skill to master, and it is usual for children to use their fingers. It is good to encourage your child to use their knife and fork, but be mindful that it takes practice and certain foods can make it harder.”
Ketley advises that if your child is struggling with using cutlery, activities such as playing with playdough are great for strengthening their hand and wrist muscles, helping with spatial awareness and practising their cutting skills. She also highlights the importance of role modelling with your children. Children learn from copying and repetition, so if you can share mealtimes with your kids they will watch you using a knife and fork and it will spur them on to give it a go themselves.
We know children can get up to mischief in the blink of an eye and a bit of food thrown on the floor or wall is naturally going to happen, but remember to always make sure your child is strapped into their highchair securely and don’t leave little ones unattended with metal cutlery.
Most toddler cutlery is dishwasher safe and will have rounded edges, making it safe for small mouths. Many brands use BPA-free materials and food-grade stainless steel which is resistant to wear and tear and is also heat resistant.
Here’s our pick of the best cutlery for toddlers.
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Doddl Cutlery Set
This award-winning cutlery is designed for children aged 12 months and over.
The uniquely handled utensils are engineered to help children improve their ‘pincer grip’ with colourful soft-touch areas to place fingers and thumbs. The knife has also been designed with a toddler’s key motor skills in mind. The design means it can rest comfortably in a child’s palm, making it easier for them to cut safely through food.
The fact that the products are well designed should hopefully mean more food goes into your child’s mouth than onto the floor!
The set comes in aqua, magenta or indigo and the handles are made from high-quality plastic, TPE and food-safe stainless steel and is BPA and phthalates-free.
Buy now £16.93, Amazon
Chomp Steel Cutlery Set
This cute steel and silicone cutlery set features a panda motif on each item. It comes in three stylish colours; blueberry, rose and sage green. The small handles also feature a choke guard; an important safety feature that stop a child from putting the cutlery too far into their mouth.
The 10.5cm-long cutlery is BPA-free and made from 100 per cent food grade silicone which is odour-free and allergen-free. Chomp also has a range of silicone suction plates, bowls and bibs which complement the panda cutlery, whether your child is eating in a high chair or at the dinner table.
Buy now £10.00, Chomp
Pro Cook Children’s Cutlery Set
Pro Cook’s cutlery sets are designed to make mealtimes fun with their playful dinosaur, star and apple designs. The slim plastic handles are easy to grasp and children will feel grown up using these at the dinner table with the rest of the clan.
This product comes at a great price but might suit older children as the handles aren’t as chunky and easy to grip as others in this round-up. The set comes in a box which would make it a lovely gift.
Buy now £7.00, Pro Cook
LIEWOOD Tove Cutlery Set
This cutlery set manages to be sweet, but also sophisticated, with its 3D silicone animal designs on the handles. LIEWOOD is a Danish brand which prides itself on its eco-credentials which many parents will appreciate when choosing the right cutlery for their toddler.
The crocodile, elephant and giraffe are just the right size for small hands (15-16.5cm) and easy for young children to grasp and control. The cutlery is made from stainless steel and is dishwasher safe and durable. The price of this set may put some people off but we think the design and reputation of the brand make it a good choice, particularly as a gift.
Buy now £22.40, Natural Baby Shower
Sebra Cutlery Set
A Danish brand creating stylish and practical cutlery for young children, Sebra's set comes in three colours; powder blue, blossom pink and moonlight beige.
The handles are crafted from plastic and are designed to fit comfortably in a child’s small hands. It’s not the most exciting-looking set on this list but the handles are ergonomically designed for children’s hands, helping them to become independent at mealtimes.
This trio is dishwasher safe and matches Sebra’s melamine tableware which is available in the same colours.
Buy now £14.40, Scandi Born
Tommee Tippee Big Kids Stainless Steel Cutlery Set
This is a great first metal cutlery set from a company that knows what parents and children need. The rounded edges on the fork and knife will protect toddlers’ mouths, teeth and gums and the chunky handles are easy to grip and control.
The set is dishwasher and steriliser safe and all Tommee Tippee products are BPA, BPS, PVC, phthalates and nitrosamine free. The low price means you can have a number of sets to hand in your kitchen which will save on washing up three times a day.
Buy now £3.49, Amazon
Tum Tum Tots Easy Scoop Toddler Cutlery Set with Travel Case
This is a really handy cutlery set to keep in your bag when you’re out or on holiday. Many restaurants and cafes only have adult-sized cutlery so having something your child can use will help make mealtimes in public a bit calmer - and hopefully less messy. Children will enjoy lining up the cutlery to make the face of Stanley Sloth, Felicity Fox, Ladybird, Scruff the Dog or Bluebell the Cat.
The fork has a deep shape which makes it easier for children to master tricky foods like peas. It's also designed with rounded edges to protect their mouths.
The travel case means you can easily take the dirty cutlery home to wash. The product is dishwasher safe but the brand says hand washing is preferable.
Buy now £16.00, Fy
Munchkin Splash Toddler Fork, Knife and Spoon Set
This is one of the more simple designs on this list but Munchkin have created another practical and colourful cutlery set. It’s suitable for children aged from 18 months upwards and comes in three colours: blue, green and purple.
This is a grown up-looking set that will encourage children to eat independently and learn to self-feed like mummy and daddy. The products are BPA-free and dishwasher-safe.
Buy now £5.99, John Lewis
My Little Coco - My First Cutlery Set
My Little Coco was founded by TV presenter and former singer Rochelle Humes who has created some chic and user-friendly baby products. This 18 months+ set has easy-to-grip silicone handles in a light beige tone with a sweet palm tree motif. The knife’s blade is small and rounded which makes it very safe for cutting and the spoon is a great shape for scooping up foods like yoghurt.
The BPA and phthalate-free cutlery can also be bought as part of a ‘My All Grown Up’ set which includes a matching plate, bowl and non-slip placemat.
Buy now £14.00, Boots
Vital Baby Nourish Big Kid Cutlery Set
Vital Baby have created another brightly coloured fun cutlery set which will help build a child’s confidence when it comes to self-feeding in toddlerhood and beyond.
The cutlery is suitable from 12 months and is made from high-grade stainless steel and phthalates, Latex and BPA-free materials. The handles are chunky for small hands to grip and the knife has been designed at a safe angle to ensure a safe and simple cutting motion. The fork also has rounded tines (points) to stop children from hurting themselves when they eat.
The product comes in two colourways called Fizz (purple and red) and Pop (green and blue) and is the perfect progression from the Vital Baby Growing Up angled cutlery.
Buy now £4.67, Vital Baby
Verdict
The Doddl cutlery set is our top product on this list. The innovative ergonomic design is unique and has been created with children’s development and independence as a top priority. The knife blade is really clever, and not something we’ve seen many other brands do. The colours are clean and fresh and match Doddl’s other feeding products, such as suction bowls and plates.
Founder Cat Dodd has won a number of awards for her designs, including The King’s Award for Enterprise, and we look forward to seeing what comes next!
