The game they'll still play at forty
or 4 payments of £10.74 with Klarna
🛡️ 30-day full refund, no questions. Fewer than 30 returns from 23,000+ orders.
- Hand-carved pieces
- Walnut & sycamore
- Folds flat
- Plays from age 6
- Ships 2-3 days
- Made in Britain
- 30-day returns
- Klarna available
Delivery in 2-3 working days · 30-day returns · Est. 1795
as seen in
Real talk
The worry: will they sit still long enough to learn?
Most games vanish after one afternoon. This one stays on the coffee table, waiting. Because it looks beautiful enough to live there, and plays seriously enough that your child keeps coming back. The hand-carved Staunton pieces feel right in small hands. The solid wood board doesn't wobble. And something shifts when they realise they can beat you.
You get the quiet afternoon you needed, plus a child who's thinking three moves ahead instead of scrolling. That's worth more than the price.
Joe Jaques, Jaques of London
What's in the box
What you get
Everything a proper game needs, nothing you don't. The board folds shut in seconds and lives as beautifully as it plays.
The board
15 inches across when open. Walnut and sycamore squares that feel solid underfoot. Folds in half so it lives on a shelf without taking up a bookcase. Each piece is hand-carved and finished to the same standard tournament sets use.
- ✓ Solid wood, weighted to stay put
- ✓ Folds flat for coffee table storage
- ✓ Hand-finished Staunton pieces
How it plays
No assembly, no learning curve if they've played before. Open it, set the pieces, and begin. The weight and finish make it feel like a proper game, not a toy. Played the same way at tournaments worldwide since 1849.
- ✓ Plays exactly like tournament chess
- ✓ No setup confusion
- ✓ Staunton pattern used worldwide
The gift
Arrives gift-wrapped. The packaging is the thing people remember most. You won't need to buy wrapping paper or find a box. We've done that already.
- ✓ Gift-wrapped on arrival
- ✓ 60-day returns if it's not right
- ✓ A note card space is yours
Order by 2pm, arrives Tuesday. Gift-wrapped.
Was £58.99
Folding Chess Board - Luxury 15 Inch Chess Set: £42.99
While they play
What grows quietly while they play
Looks like play. Works like a lesson.
Strategic thinking
Chess forces them to plan ahead, not react. That muscle transfers to homework, friendship troubles, decisions under pressure.
Concentration
A proper game pulls their attention for 30 minutes, 45 minutes, an hour. No screen, no buzz, no option to skip ahead.
Patience
They learn to sit with a difficult position, to think instead of panic. That's rarer than it sounds.
Connection
You're not watching them play a game. You're playing with them. That's the real win.
What families say about Jaques of London
What parents and grandparents say
"Excellent quality wood toys, so well made, no sharp edges, all lovely & smooth, very colourful & plenty of choice. Very reasonably priced & so beautifully wrapped you don't want to open them. Highly recommend this company."
"Fast delivery, excellent products, extremely good quality and long lasting. My granddaughter loves the toys from here. Good age ranges covered."
"These toys tick all the boxes, educational, colourful, fun, well made and great service. I just keep buying more and more."
"We love our toys from Jaques of London. The quality is excellent and they're the perfect size for little hands to hold and play with easily. Beautifully made, sturdy wooden toys that will last for years. Highly recommend!"
"Harrods grade gifting for a very reasonable price. Not the usual tat from China. Had several hand picked orders fron Jaques, nice to know its a UK business with old school quality."
"I am a real fan of this company. If only I had come across them years ago when my boys were little. It's my go to for beautiful, good quality toys for my granddaughter now and any gift I need to buy. They arrived quickly, prices are reasonable and the special touch is they are beautifully packaged too. I love the heritage of this business!"
Get ready for life
Why real play matters
Real brain growth comes from real play.
Years making games
Jaques created the Staunton chessmen in 1849. The pattern in your set is the same one used in tournaments the world over.
Plays well from age
Most 6-year-olds get the rules. By 8, they're teaching friends. Grandparents play equally well. No age limit on the upside.
Days to your door
Ordered Monday morning, plays Saturday. The only delay is the one you choose: how long to wait before you teach them the rules.
Why this matters right now
We really are different
Why this one over the plastic version at the supermarket
| Jaques Folding Chess Board - Luxury 15 Inch Chess Set | Cheap Alternatives | |
|---|---|---|
| Material | ✅ | ❌ Plastic, feels cheap in their hands |
| Stays put during play | ✅ | ⚠️ Wobbles, knocks over easily |
| Looks good on display | ✅ | ❌ Goes in a toy box, never seen again |
| Pieces hand-finished | ✅ | ❌ Moulded, seams visible |
| Still plays at 40 | ✅ | ❌ Broken or lost by year two |
| Made to tournament standard | ✅ | ⚠️ Non-standard, confuses proper players |
| Returns guarantee | ✅ | ❌ Supermarket: no returns on opened games |
- ✅ Solid walnut & sycamore
- ✅ Weighted, never wobbles
- ✅ Coffee table worthy
- ✅ Hand-carved pieces
- ✅ Lasts decades
- ✅ Tournament standard
- ✅ 60-day returns
- ❌ Plastic feels hollow
- ❌ Tips over mid-game
- ❌ Stays in the toy box
- ❌ Moulded, rough edges
- ❌ Breaks in months
- ⚠️ Confuses real players
- ❌ No returns promised
Order by 2pm, arrives Tuesday. Gift-wrapped.
Was £58.99
Folding Chess Board - Luxury 15 Inch Chess Set: £42.99
30-Day Money-Back Guarantee
Not right? Return it within 30 days. Full refund, no questions.
Questions & answers
Questions parents and grandparents ask
Which set should I buy? I'm buying for a 6th birthday and don't want to get it wrong.
This one. The 15-inch Folding Chess Set is the default: hand-carved, it folds flat so it lives on a shelf, and it plays seriously enough that they'll still want it at 10, 15, 20. If they're younger than 6, consider our wooden starter set. If they're a tournament player, the larger board plays the same. For a 6-year-old? This is the one.
Is it really hand-carved? Or is that just marketing?
Each piece is hand-finished by real craftspeople. That's why you feel the weight difference compared to moulded plastic. Not the usual tat from China, as one parent told us. You'll notice the moment you hold it: the seams are clean, the finish is smooth, and it doesn't rattle. That's the hand-work.
How long will it last? Will they actually keep playing?
Played properly, forever. We've had customers email photos of sets their parents bought 30 years ago, now in their children's homes. The wood doesn't warp, the pieces don't chip. One review said it well: worth every penny full price. Families don't sell these. They pass them on.
I'm worried about delivery time. We're buying for a birthday.
Order by 2pm, arrives Tuesday. It ships within 2-3 business days and arrives gift-wrapped. If you're ordering today for a weekend celebration, you'll have it in time. Our fastest-praised detail is the packaging: nothing else to buy.
How much does it cost?
The Folding Chess Board - Luxury 15 Inch Chess Set is £42.99 today (down from £58.99). Klarna is available at checkout if you prefer to spread the cost.
What's your returns policy?
30 days, full refund, no conditions. Return it for any reason and we refund in full. We've been standing behind what we make since 1795.
Order by 2pm, arrives Tuesday. Gift-wrapped.
Was £58.99
Folding Chess Board - Luxury 15 Inch Chess Set: £42.99
Our story
Making toys worth keeping since 1795.
Jaques of London was founded in 1795. We invented croquet, table tennis, and the Staunton chess set. For 230 years, we've been making things that pull children away from passive entertainment and into active, curious, hands-on play.
We made the Staunton chessmen in 1849 and haven't stopped making games since. This folding set carries that lineage: solid wood hand-carved pieces that play exactly like tournament sets, a board that's beautiful enough to live on a bookcase, and a fold that takes 4 seconds so it lives as quietly as it plays. 231 years of one thing means we know what endures. This is what endures.
Toys and games that leave something behind: a skill, a memory, a piece of play that gets passed on.
Joe, Jaques of London
Ready when you are
Order now,
plays this weekend
Was £58.99
£42.99 Save 27%
🛡️ 30-day money-back guarantee · 🚚 Delivery in 2-3 working days · 🏛️ Est. 1795
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