We Have Food Banks but Should We Have Toy Banks ??
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As Christmas is getting very close should we be thinking about 'TOY Banks'.......I've had several friends say they would appreciate being pointed to a toy bank hence then having more money for the essentials like food.....
I underst where you are coming from but the charity shops are filled with cheap toys. I went into CEX the other day, every DVD is priced at a pound. If you look around on eBay or Gumtree etc you can find some real bargains.
eyeballkerry some folks haven't even got the money to purchase from the above which is heartbreaking and the kids don't understand
Jackscot that's a good idea, where I live we have 12 charity shops in the town but not one does anything like this, might write to them all and approach the idea thanks
Where I live we have a local charity that does a toy appeal and gives out toys to those in need. You just put your name on a form online, tell them the age of the child and they deliver them wrapped in time for Christmas. Another local charity gives away toys too, you just go down to their premises and pick up what you need.
I know people will say look in the charity shops or buy 2nd hand and that's great if you can afford to, not everyone has the extra couple of pounds to buy from the charity shop.
MrsCraig that's a great idea and I didn't even know that charity shops do appeals for toys, fantastic idea
Bonnylass3 it's actually not a charity shop, it's a charity that has a storage area where the donations go and then you can go there and collect it. They take donations of items and money. It is a small local charity but really helps the local community.
MrsCraig wow how lovely is that. Really wonderful of the charity shop to do that.
Bonnylass3 it is a great idea. They take pretty much anything as long as its in good condition. I've donated to them before as hate the idea of a child going without. It would be great if every town had something like it.
Jerseydrew yeah it really is and you can just see the happiness in the kids receiving them.....
Pjran so do mine, as I explain that other children want them to share with their happiness of the toys
Also Facebook has free sites that everything is free you just need to put your area in we have a few in my area you just need to ask to be considered and if your picked you go pick up
jigsawx3x that's a new one on me and I'll have to look into this brilliant idea thanks
In principal not a bad idea, but i think a lot of second hand toys would be broken, have bits missing or are generally not in a condition that you would want to pass onto your own child.
Mango4 I buy my son a lot of second hand toys, never had any that were broken, had bits missing or weren't in good condition. I also sell his on when done with them, but only if in good condition. Any toys would be checked by the toy bank staff before they were given away to someone.
SaveMeSunday yeah there's definitely that side to it too.....thanks everyone for taking the time to comment, your opinions have been very useful for my ideas
We have a beach toys scheme where I am. There's boxes at beaches with toys you borrow them while there and leave any decent toys for others to use.
Think we need more toy banks/libraries for people to use. Don't see why it can't even be part of local libraries. Though I know loads of councils have closed them to save money. Libraries don't need to be about just books especially as loads read online these days.
Local children centre do give out things to most vulnerable families that use them
As a kid I was given presents from Barnados because I was in a single parent household and my mother struggled financially. I certainly think its the right thing to have toys, chidren's clothes and children's bicycles available from toy banks. Children outgrow so many things and those who can't be bothered to sell them on should think about donating to such toy banks. Yes they can donate to standard charity shops but many of those are effectively businesses. Some charity bosses are on huge sums and the export of monies to other countries even for charitable purposes still damages our economy. It just feels better to me to give those toys and clothes to a toy bank because those products will benefit people directly and no financial margin for charities to exploit.
I was watching a video about a man who has after all costs are paid is on £30 a month for food, washing etc in Weston Super Mare in Somerset which is close to where I live. There is some real poverty about nowadays. He has one meal a day and lives in a tiny flat which benefits pay the rent on except the rent has gone up but his benefits haven't. He has major health issues and has worked hard most of his life before ill health.
The national debt is staggering so every year the government will be under huge pressure to reduce benefits to pay increased interest payments.
BonzoBanana thanks so much for your great reply, (such a shame we couldn't sit down together and put these troubles to rest), I've really enjoyed reading your reply and totally 100% agree with everything you've written....its was so sad reading about what you wrote about the gentleman in Weston-super-Mare (I live close also in Swindon!) £30 a month is so sad, I admit I had to check I had read it correctly, why can't this government get its finger out!! Thanks for the great reply
Toy banks seem like a good idea to me.Problem is most children and parents expect so much more these days.Marbles,compendiums,five stones and ludo were deemed sufficient when I was younger.No Playstations or Ninetendos then.Snakes and ladders and chess sets where about as sophisticated as it got!
Well there always has been those donation schemes for Christmas where you can buy a child a gift or a box of gifts. I think it’s important for those of us who have a little bit of luxury to give a little more this Christmas if possible
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