A mum is out to prove that setting up a new business is child's play.

Alison Chesworth, 28, has launched www.toyboxlive.co.uk, the UK's first online toy rental business.

She said she was challenging the traditional concept of buying toys with a service which saves on space and money as families curb their spending.

Her business, based at the Empire Buisness Centre, in Liverpool Road, Burnley, boasts more than 1,000 toys for babies up to five-year-olds and over.

She said: “When I had my daughter Theia, I realised how much stuff you can accumulate.

“I thought there has got to be a better way.

“Toy rental companies have taken off in America but there was nobody doing it in the UK, so I thought this would be a good idea.

“In the next few months, I am looking at toys for older children and outdoor toys.”

Her monthly rates range from £25 to £35, with bundles of three to five toys available. And if a child loves a toy and wants to keep it, she will consider selling it at discount.

Each toy is cleaned using an organic and hypoallergenic solution or steam cleaned before it is wrapped for the next user.

Alison, who attended Mansfield High School, said: “People rent houses, they get cars on HP but they don't understand the concept of renting toys.

“It is an affordable way of offering children what they want without a big outlay. Children outgrow toys very quickly these days, so this saves people spending hundreds and helps with storage.

“Then there is the environmental side, as excess toys won't be thrown away into landfill.”