A token speaks a thousand words

National Trust and Coram Collaboration

A project to help children explore personal identity, emotional expression, and the idea of belonging through the creation of a symbolic token—just as mothers once did when leaving their children at the Foundling Hospital.

Project outline:

Primary aged children are invited to help create 469 tokens to represent the children who stepped through the Westerham Foundling Hospital site in the 1700’s.
A cross curricular project – History, Art, D.T, PSHE, exploring the topic of Belonging and Identity.
All tokens must be no larger than A6 (10cm by 15cm).
All tokens must be fabric-based.
Competition open date is 12:00 on 6 October 2025 and closes 12:00 on 21 November 2025.
469 token entries will be selected at random and then displayed in the National Trust property, Quebec House.

Project outcomes for KS2:

Children will:

Understand the emotional significance of the tokens and the historical context of the Foundling Hospital.
Be able to articulate what identity and belonging mean to them.
Show empathy and respect for people in difficult circumstances, past and present.
Understand the historical and cultural development of their art forms.
Design and create a small fabric token symbolic of those left with children at the foundling hospital.

Optional resources for KS2:

Fabrics – including fabric samples, wool, felt, ribbon, patches from clothing, scarves, blankets and other household items.
Threads
Sewing needles
Glue
Scissors
Rulers
Weaving cards
Cross stitch fabric (Binca)