Piles of jigsaws, soft toys and games filled Clydach community hall this weekend in a bid to help out families who are feeling the pinch this Christmas. Hundreds of people turned up to donate used toys and hundreds more came to grab presents for the kids to make sure this Christmas is as magical as any other.
Bayview Aluminium owner Gareth Jones, 36, and his business partner Carl Hancock decided to give back to their community this year and put on their first annual toy bank in response to the soaring cost-of-living crisis which is affecting families across Wales. Wanting to do more than just making a one-off donation to charity, Gareth and Carl organised the toy bank which was a huge success and helped to spread some much-needed festive cheer across the Swansea valley village.
The pair volunteered with their families on Saturday, November 26 to organise donations which poured into Clydach Community Hall, Vadre Road. The used toys, which Gareth said were in excellent condition, were organised into sections such as board games, soft toys and baby items. The next day, the hall was open for anyone to come in and take what they needed for Christmas with no limit on what could be taken home.
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Although their business is based Carl's hometown of Port Talbot, business partner Gareth is Clydach-based and wanted to help out families in his local community. "We're both from working class families and we both have young families. We were looking for a community project and it just came to us to do something sustainable. We know that people don't have the money at the moment to cover Christmas."
Those who came to use the toy bank told volunteers it was a huge relief to know they had presents to give their children this year. Some people told Gareth the toy bank had provided the bulk of what they would be able to give their kids this year. Others filled their cars with toys for all the family but there were still lots of toys left over which Gareth said will be taken to charity.
A lot of the parents and carers who visited the toy bank were worried about job security, said Gareth, who spoke to the wife of a postal worker who was worried about making ends meet this Christmas due to ongoing strikes. Another woman that visited the toy bank told Gareth she had given up work this year due to the cost of childcare. Gareth said many young families visited the toy bank to grab baby toys.
Gareth and Carl's family-run business recently won Start Up Company of the Year at the Swansea Bay Business Awards but Gareth said they want to stay grounded and connected to their local community. They hope to host the toy bank again in the coming years and Clydach community councillor Matthew Bailey said the response has been "extraordinary". Cllr. Bailey added:
"I hope this helped make Christmas special for many of our local children, certainly helping with stress and anxiety many parents face. We will ensure this becomes an annual event."
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