Our Toy Recycling Initiative

Ethical Toy Shop | Articles, Experts & Links | Our Toy Recycling Initiative

Toy Recycling in Your Community (TRiC)

How You Can Help Your Community with Toys

Did you know that more than 40 million toys were thrown away last year?

And of that 40 million, 13 million toys ended up in the dustbin and landfill sites?

Those numbers are quite incredible aren't they? I was pretty shocked when I read them especially as I sell toys!! They might be ethical toys but they're not ethical if they are discarded into our landfills when a child has grown out of them. I realised that I had to do something about this because if toy buyers aren't recycling their children's toys then I can't sell toys with a clear conscience.

And so the Toys to You Toy Recycling in your Community (TRiC) was born.

TRiC aims to:

encourage parents to recycle and reuse all their unbroken, unwanted toys.
encourage parents to view sharing old toys are the responsible way to deal with outgrown toys.
encourage parents to recycle and reuse their unbroken toys within their local community to boost fundraising within communities.

So How do I Recycle toys?

When our children receive 'new' toys they are a source of endless fun and amusement. They're faces light up at the prospect of something new to play with. Children don't really care whether they're brand new or not, they're new to them and that's all that matters to them.

When your child outgrows his or her toys they can then be turned into 'new' toys for other children who will again see them as a source of endless fun.

Instead of throwing away unbroken toys you can donate them to a good cause. You can also get your children involved by asking them to sort out what toys they don't play with. Then come to a decision together about where to donate the toys to. This can create the perfect chance for discussion on the environment and recycling as well as helping good causes.

Christmas is the best time to get children to have a clear out. In our house I tell the kids that they need to sort out what they don't play with anymore because Christmas is going to bring so much more stuff that they need to make space for it. Then we decide together what we're going to do with the toys. The broken toys we take to our local recycling plant.

Recycling for a good cause could mean any number of charities or community groups. Below is a list of suggested places you can donate your unbroken, outgrown toys to:

Local Charity Shop
Local Children's charity
Children's hospital
Children's hospice
List them on www.greengiving.org.uk
Local Playgroup
Local Toy Library
Local Jumble Sale
Toy Swap Party

Children's hospitals - treat hundreds of children every day, some of these children stay in hospital for many weeks, even months. The toys your children have become grown out of could be a make a child's stay in hospital just that little bit easier.

Children's Charities - such as Barnardo's will use the toys to raise vital funds for their charity.

Charity Shop - take your old toys to your local charity shop and help a charity raise necessary money while recycling your children's toys.

Children's Hospice - children in hospices are very, very ill. Your child's old toy might bring a smile to a very sick child's face. That's got to feel good!

www.greengiving.org.uk
Give and receive children's clothes, toys, books, furniture and equipment for FREE.
Items that you no longer need could be just what someone else is looking for. Help the environment, support other families and keep unwanted items out of landfills by recycling your old toys at www.greengiving.org.uk.

Playgroup - ask your local playgroup if they would like some of your child's outgrown toys. If they take them then you are saving your local playgroup some money.

Toy Library - Your local Toy Library is a wonderful source of toys for children. Parents take their children to the Toy Library where they 'borrow' toys for a certain length of time just like a regular library. What your child might be bored with will excite and interest other children who use Toy Libraries.

Jumble Sale - Donate your child's old toys to your local jumble sale and help raise money for a good local community cause.

Have a Toy Swap Party
Invite local mums over with their kids unwanted toys, swap them round and send them home with great 'new' toys for their kids. Also a great excuse for a cup of coffee and a chat with mums in your area!

Ebay and Car Boot Sales

Or you could sell the toys yourself and make some money back either for you or for your kids. Getting your children to sell their own old toys for pocket money is quite a good way to teach them the economics of life. And if you explain why they're selling the toys instead of just throwing them away you have the opportunity to start a talk on saving the environment.

The best two ways I know of selling old toys that are unbroken but unwanted is Ebay and Car Boot Sales.

Again, by not throwing the old toys away you are giving another child the chance to enjoy what your child loved about that toy.

Parents will buy second hand toys at Car Boot Sales quite happily. They know they're second hand but they know they're getting a bargain. Car boot sales in your area are usually advertised in your local newspaper.

Same goes for Ebay. Parents search Ebay looking for that perfect toy. And that perfect toy might just be the toy you were going to throw away. Why not make some money from the old toys and help the environment as well?

Environwise Director, Dr Martin Gibson said: "...13 million relatively new toys going in the bin every year is still a huge problem. I would urge every parent to view repair and share as the responsible way to deal with toys that are outgrown or broken."

While UK Director of Market and Communications at Barnardos, Andrew Nebel added: "I am delighted to see toys pass from child to child, providing fresh fun and enjoyment.

"If they are donated to us, they create vital funds for our projects which help more than 100,000 children and their families across the UK.

"Recycling for a good case is definitely the way forward!"

So come on join us at Toys to You and make a difference to your community and to our environment by Toy Recycling in your Community (TRiC)

**The figures quoted at the top of this story come from an Envirowise research study**

Green Giving - Recycle your Old Toys FREE

Recycle your old toys for free with this donation website. You list what you want to recycle and then choose who you donate them to. This is a not for profit website and therefore it is FREE to list your items but you must be willing to donate them free also.
www.greengiving.org.uk

National Association of Toy & Leisure Libraries
Toy libraries help children develop through play and toy loan; leisure libraries support accessible leisure activities for adults with special needs.
www.natll.org.uk

Barnardos Children Charity
Barnardo's supports children and young people ...Barnardo's is the UK's largest children's charity. We run more than 300 projects nationwide.
www.barnardos.org.uk

Practical Environmental Advice for Business
Free government-supported environmental consultation, advice, and documentation for UK businesses.
www.envirowise.gov.uk

Ebay - The UK's Online Marketplace
Visit eBay UK and register to buy or sell new and used books, cars, computers, digital cameras, toys, jewellery and music. Auction or Fixed Price.
www.ebay.co.uk

Toy Recycling in your Community (TRiC)

Ethical Toy Shop | Articles, Experts & Links | Our Toy Recycling Initiative

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