Renovation of the William Morris Hall

Walthamstow Toy Library and Play Centre

02085093401

Renovation of the William Morris Hall

An appeal by Walthamstow Toy Library and Play Centre

52%

£26,212

of £50,000

days left

314

backers

Donate now

About the appeal

We have moved! Our old building on Hurst Road has been sold to developers. It seems like five minutes ago that we moved there. We were there for two years and achieved so much - from the development of a purpose built sensory room, increasing toy loaning in the community and working with in partnership with other groups to deliver fun, educational activities. We really want this to continue and know you do to.

Our wonderful new home is the William Morris Hall on Somers Road and our landlord, Barnardo's have given us a 10 year lease, so we can carry on our brilliant work. BUT, we really need your help...

The building has been empty for some time and is in desperate need of redevelopment so it's fit for our services and the community. It needs decorating inside and out, the roof and windows need repairing, lighting needs updating to LED lights, the heating, security system and the lift need maintenance, the garden (we won't have the full garden) needs work to support biodiversity and children's play. We also need to move our Sensory Room and want to set up a designated SEND toy library. Please donate whatever you can big or small!

For those of you who don't know about us, Walthamstow Toy Library has been operating in the borough for 48 years. Our mission is to provide safe, creative spaces for families to play, learn and interact and to ensure that all children have access to high quality, educational toys which don’t cost the Earth. In addition, we provide a variety of parenting support initiatives, we run popular community events, we are a place where families can donate unwanted toys and equipment for reuse, and we provide volunteering opportunities for local students and residents. We are also a low cost space for community groups and businesses to hire and a popular birthday party venue. We really care about people and the planet. The toy industry is incredibly wasteful. The Toy Library supports the principles of the circular economy. We encourage the community to share, borrow, reuse, repair, refurbish and recycle unwanted toys, books and equipment. We operate to reduce levels of consumption, which in turn reduces pollution, biodiversity loss and the amount of waste going to landfill. We have over 2000 families registered with us. In the 2022-23 financial year over 1000 families borrowed toys and 450 donated unwanted items.

52%

£26,212

of £50,000

days left

314

backers

Donate now

What your gift could provide

£25

development of the garden

£50

sensory room and SEND toy library design

£100

general building repairs and renovation

Latest donations

Roger Huddle

I’m so glad this building is being used for good purpose. It’s very important to the history of local workers movement.

05/12/2023

£20

Lauren Hart

This is a donation for the book on Glen close. Thank you

02/12/2023

£3

Anonymous

I made a donation to Walthamstow Toy Library and Play Centre

30/11/2023

£100

Stats

Online donations

£11,012.00

Gift Aid

£2,258.50

Raised offline

£15,200.00

Total raised: £28,470.50

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