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The 2007 Toy Appeal was once again a huge success. Over 250 children were able to celebrate Christmas with their friends and families as a direct result of gifts provided by the Toy Appeal. All corners of the Borough were reached and all ages from a few days old to 16 years.

The use of Wheelie Bins was a new and great way of not only receiving more toy donations but also spreading the word about the Toy Appeal so that more children could benefit. We are very grateful to the Mayor & Mayoress of Hinckley & Bosworth for launching the 2007 appeal and for all the support and enthusiasm that the council provided generally.

We were also very pleased to link up with the Salvation Army amongst others and are looking forward to forging new ways of working for the 2008 appeal. Worklink proved themselves yet again as toy deliverers par excellence and got over 100 large bags full of toys out of our overcrowded offices to their rightful destination with the minimum of fuss.

We are now looking forward to the 2008 appeal with a number of plans already being laid ... If you have any ideas of thoughts on how 2008 could be even bigger and better then please get in touch. We would also love to hear from you with your thoughts on the 2007 appeal and how it went.

Who is the Toy Appeal for?

Hinckley & Bosworth Toy Appeal has been running for over 19 years and aims to ensure that all children between the ages of 0 – 16 years receive a gift at Christmas time.

There are always families who struggle at Christmas and whose children do not get the same excitement or enjoyment out of Christmas that their friends might. The Toy Appeal aims to redress this balance by providing one ‘large’ gift and several smaller ‘stocking fillers’ to these children.

Children can be referred to the Toy Appeal from a number of ways including via their school, Health Visitor, School Nurse, local Charity, Church or from the family themselves. We do not assess whether a family or child should be referred to the Toy Appeal but simply accept all referrals. We are keen to ensure that all children who could benefit from the Toy Appeal do so.

Gifts are delivered to families in the run up to Christmas – usually around the second week of December. We do not wrap up gifts as this allows families to do this themselves and to see gifts that have been provided.

We are always happy to receive donations of toys or money to help the Toy Appeal. We can only accept brand new toys that still have their shop labels on and that are in good condition.

Please contact Mary Hall, General Manager, VAH&B for more information. Tel: 01455 615962 or email: mhall@vahb.org.uk

2007 Toy Appeal Statistics

Distribution of toys...

• Each child referred to the Appeal received one ‘large’ gift and several smaller ‘stocking’ fillers.
• Several organisations including Women’s Aid and Family Centres received extra toys for use throughout the year.
• £4,800 was raised for the 2007 Toy Appeal via various trusts and organisations.

Huge Thanks to…
Without the following people and organisations, the 2007 Toy Appeal would not have been the success it was. We would like to extend our huge thanks to all of the below, on behalf of the hundreds of children who were able to have a wonderful Christmas:

• Fosseway Radio for their enthusiastic support and publicity
• HBBC for the use of the wheelie bins, enthusiastic commitment and involvement throughout.

• For allowing us to place wheelie bins in their premises:
o Asda
o Earl Shilton Community House
o Hollycroft Medical Centre
o Higham Way Baptist Church
o St Francis Community Centre
o Westfield Community Centre
o Britannia Centre
o Homestart
o Hinckley Leisure Centre
o HBBC Offices: Florence House & Argents Mead

• For involving the whole school in collecting money and donations:
o Sketchley Hill Primary School
o St Peters Primary School
o Newlands Primary School

• For involving the Church in collecting money and donations:
o Hinckley Methodist Church
o Salvation Army
o Stoke Golding Church
o Burbage Methodist Church
o Higham Way Baptist Church
o Earl Shilton Methodist Church
o Market Bosworth Free Church
o Kirby Mallory All Saints Church
o Barwell Methodist Church
o St Mary’s Parish Church

• For providing discounts on purchases
o The Co-op, Nuneaton
o Debenhams, Nuneaton

• For financial contributions:
o The J P Corah Foundation: £300
o Earl Shilton Charity Bike Ride: £250
o Edith Murphy Foundation: £1000
o Anonymous donation: £1000
o The George Ward Trust: £350
o Hinckley Fire Station: £500
o Individual donation: £10
o St Mary’s Parish Church: £100
o St Peters Primary School: £127.25

• Worklink for delivering toys across the Borough
• Hinckley Snooker Club for providing storage space
• North Wilshire Carpets for donating carpets for storage space