Published on Wednesday, 28 August 2024 at 9:33:00 AM
The Leederville Toy Library has grown its collection with new educational and sustainable toy kits for young children, thanks to a City of Vincent environmental grant.
Vincent’s environmental grants program assists and encourages schools and community groups to undertake environmental projects.
The toy library is a community-run organisation that provides local families with high quality, educational toys through an affordable annual membership.
It is located inside the Vincent Community Centre, 99 Loftus Street, Leederville.
Members borrow from the catalogue of toys and contribute to the library by volunteering several times throughout the year.
Thanks to Vincent’s environmental grant worth $2000, the organisation purchased Lovevery toy kits designed for children aged six months to three years.
Each kit is designed for a particular age and skill level. Some of the toys include ball drop boxes, board books, textured objects and puzzles.
“The Lovevery toy kits promote early childhood development through interactive, age-appropriate toys that encourage cognitive, motor and sensory skills development,” said toy library president Janica Jamieson.
“They are made from eco-friendly materials such as FSC-certified wood, soy-based ink and Oeko-Tex certified fabrics, ensuring durability and minimising waste.
“Additionally, these kits raise awareness about sustainable consumption practices among members, demonstrating the benefits of using environmentally friendly products in everyday life.”
A child playing with a sustainable toy kit.
Ms Jamieson said the grant enhanced the toy library’s ability to provide sustainable and educational resources to the local community.
“We are grateful for the support and look forward to making a meaningful impact through this initiative,” she said.
“Toy libraries are inherently sustainable, and the Leederville Toy Library community prides itself on being a fun, sustainable, community-based cooperative.
“Our members have access to a wide range of toys, which reduces the need for individual toy purchases, thereby decreasing consumption and landfill waste.
“We aim to provide high-quality, durable toys that will last many years.
“When our toys reach the end of their life with us, often after several decades, we either donate them to charity if they are still safe and suitable for play or recycle them through the Big W toy recycling program.”
A child playing with a sustainable toy kit.
There are currently 151 families that borrow toys from the library. This is a 185 per cent increase from August 2020.
Ms Jamiesons said the goals for the next 12 months were to increase the variety and number of sustainable available to members and continue to grow membership numbers.
The Repair Cafe Perth, which is based at Vincent’s North Perth Town Hall, also received a $2000 environmental grant to help cover running costs.
The not-for-profit group runs monthly events where community members bring along broken or faulty household items such as bikes, clothes, furniture or technology devices and volunteers will help fix them.
The next round of grants will be open in early 2025. Visit the environmental grants page for more details.
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