Derry Christmas Toy Swap event will help environment and family budgets

A number of local community organisations are coming together to organise a Christmas Toy Swap on a grand scale next week.
The event takes place at Long Tower Youth Club next week, with a drop off facility over several days this week at Iona Business Park.The event takes place at Long Tower Youth Club next week, with a drop off facility over several days this week at Iona Business Park.
The event takes place at Long Tower Youth Club next week, with a drop off facility over several days this week at Iona Business Park.

Local parent, Catherine Pollock, approached them after she successfully collected second hand toys for her children’s stockings in Christmas 2018. Catherine said: “I was shocked the year before at the amount of perfectly good toys in the charity shops. I felt guilty about the potential waste in my own house and I promised myself I would try to be more creative the following year. It was the best experience. I put up on Facebook the types of toys I was looking for and offered to pay, collect or swap for homemade beeswax wraps. The response was amazing. I decided I would ask my old colleagues in the Triax area to help me organise a swap on a larger scale.”

Donna McCloskey, Manager of Triax Neighbourhood Management Team, said: “People are ready for events like this because of all the news about Climate Change and the scale of plastic waste in land fill and the ocean.”

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Laura McGuinness from Bogside and Brandywell Health Forum said: “It’s also about teaching our children good habits. If receiving and passing on pre loved toys is normal for them then hopefully that will translate to other areas of their lives. It can also help reduce the pressure to spend money you don’t have.”

Catherine PollockCatherine Pollock
Catherine Pollock

Pre loved toys can be dropped off at Unit 4 Iona Business Park on Thursday November 14 from 5pm – 7.30pm, Friday 15 from 9am – 3pm and Saturday 16 10am – 1pm.

The public Toy Swap takes place at Long Tower Youth Club on Tuesday November 19 from 1pm – 7pm. £2 entry if you‘ve donated toys, £5 if you haven’t. Toys will be marked on a points basis. First entry gets you 10 points of toys, £2 for every additional 10 points. For further info contact [email protected]