Supporters & Donations
We receive support from local businesses and organisations to provide a high quality toy library service. We rely on fundraising, donations and grants to purchase new and second hand toys.
Could you sponsor Grovedale Toy Library? Contact us to express your interest.
Donations
We are often asked if we take toy donations. The answer is Yes! Thank you.
If your children have outgrown some of their toys, we would welcome your donation to boost our toy collection. The toys don’t need to be new, but they do need to be suitable enough to give to a friend.
Donated toys should also be:
- Well designed & constructed
- Safe for future play
- Durable and robust
- Clean
- Easy to clean (no soft toys, soft dolls or teddies)
- Complete with any accessories and in good condition (we sometimes accept toys with missing pieces or bits and pieces such as Little People characters, as we can use them for spare parts – please ask us first).
- Suitable for children from birth to 8 years old
- Easily transported in a car
Please contact us info@grovedaletoylibrary.org.au if you have toys to donate.
We cannot accept:
- 2nd hand bikes with chains
- Soft toys
- Books
We prefer to arrange drop off to a committee member. We can only accept donations during our open sessions by prior arrangement, as our storage space is limited until toys are processed. (Please don’t leave by the door when we aren’t in.)
Many thanks to those who have already donated to our collection. We appreciate your generous support.
Toy Libraries Australia provide us with the ability for you to make a tax deductible donation to be directed to us at https://www.givenow.com.au/toylibraries/
Supporters can make a one-off or ongoing donation and will be asked to nominate which toy library the donation is for (Grovedale Toy Library!)
Supporters immediately receive a receipt for their donation that they can use to claim a tax-deduction.
2022
Geelong Community Foundation
We are thrilled to announce the support of Geelong Community Foundation with a grant of $1500. This grant will be used to curate a series of Story Sacks of classic and popular children’s picture books, paired with puppets and toys that support different avenues into literacy.
APCO Foundation
We are delighted to have received a $500 grant from the APCO Foundation. Amongst other toys, we have used these funds to purchase a Way to Play Rubber Road set – this brilliantly open ended toy is suitable for all ages, and can be used inside, outside and in all weather conditions and over all terrain!
2021
Ashbury Community Fund
Once again, the generous support of Ashbury Estate and the Dennis Family via the Ashbury Community Fund in 2021 has enabled us to refresh and revitalise our range of domestic/real life role play toys –
many of which were almost a decade old and showing signs of being ‘well loved’ by little people. Over
this period, many toy manufacturers have updated their products to be even more realistic than ever,
and these are the types of toys that kids love to play with, allowing them to simulate everything from
mowing the lawn to washing clothes, baking and washing up the dishes using work tools to ‘build’
things. They’re the sorts of toys that are absolutely essential for childhood development.
City of Greater Geelong – Healthy & Connected Communities
It is with great excitement that we announce our success in obtaining a 2021 Healthy & Connected Communities Grant. With this $2000 grant, we will purchase a range of soft play and active play toys to meet the growing needs of our members.
ARMSTRONG Community Grants Program (Villawood)
We are delighted to have been awarded $500 in the 2021 ARMSTRONG Community Grants Program. The last 18 months have highlighted how important mental health is, and we will be supporting member families to do this with the purchase of a range of toys that support sensory stimulation.
Ferguson Plarre Waurn Ponds
The ultimate treat for many kids is a bubbacino whilst their carer enjoys a (much needed) coffee, and we were grateful to be selected by Fergusson Plarre Waurn Ponds to be their Donations for Bubbacino partner from April – June 2021.
Grill’d Waurn Ponds – Local Matters
Selected for July 2021 to have a jar in the Local Matters program, we can’t wait to find out how we’ve done! Customers are given a token with every burger they purchase, and can choose from three local community groups each month to award their tokens to.
2020
Ashbury Community Fund
After a very challenging year impacted by COVID-19, it was so exciting to receive a $1000 grant from the Ashbury Community Fund to invest in a range of Indigenous & Australian Toys, working with local organisations such as Narana to connect with local artists. These toys will be debuted in 2021.
City of Greater Geelong
We were successful in obtaining a $2000 COVID-19 Response Grant, which enabled us to purchase equipment to make delivery of Click & Collect services easier, and manage COVID-19 hygiene requirements. We were also able to purchase new Green Toys – made from recycled plastics, these toys are robust and easily cleaned in the dishwasher!
2019
Ashbury Community Fund
It was so exciting to receive a $1000 grant from the Ashbury Community Fund to spruce up our Party Packs. These packs are available to both members and non-members to hire for one week.
We attended the presentation to 19 non-profit groups across the Armstrong Creek area, receiving $15,000 in Ashbury Community Fund grants. The host, Grant Dennis, Director, Dennis Family Group Director, highlighted the importance of the Community Fund program.
“Community Funds were introduced as a practical way of giving back to the communities we create. We recognise the vital role not-for-profit groups play in connecting people and fostering a sense of belonging within our estates.”
https://ashburyestate.com.au/community-fund
Geelong Connected Communities
We received a $500 Community Sponsorship Grant from Geelong Connected Communities to purchase new laptops for our volunteer duty members to use during open sessions.
Financial contributions from an ever-growing group of local businesses and organisations allow Geelong Connected Communities to coordinate and administer a 24/7 grants program supporting organisations throughout the Geelong region with resources to deliver better services, support and experiences for the people of Geelong.
Telstra Kids
We are delighted to announce our success in applying for a $1,200 grant from Telstra. Telstra Kids helps kids thrive in their connected world. Our Telstra Kids grant will be used to to purchase coding toys for loan to members and provide education for parents in stimulating play with early coding toys. This project aims to inspire young children to develop a passion for technology beyond the use of tablets and phones for entertainment. Coding is a basic literacy in the digital age, and it is important for kids to understand and be able to work with and understand the technology around them.
Huge thanks to Joseph Foley from Telstra, who is the referrer, for applying for the funding for us. We are very excited to share in the million dollars the Telstra Foundation provides each year to help kids connect to a digital future.
Complete Shotcrete – purchase of large Construction Toy
Complete Shotcrete
2018
Ashbury Community Fund – awarded grant to support Active Communities, purchase of sporting toys.