Free tat?

[di]

Does anyone have any suggestions as to where I could get free cheap toys?

We have a Spring Fayre at the school every year and always end up spending more on Luck Dip prizes than we make.

I've got people saving their Mcdonalds free toys and tat from party bags, but it doesn't seem to have amounted to much.

I tried Menzies (newsagent distributors) but they're no longer able to give away the toys from old magazines...they have to go back to the publishers.

Any ideas?

[OverWyreGrower]

Could you ask on Freegle/Freecycle?

[zazen999]

Or the parents!

[di]

Or the parents!

Blood...stone, springs to mind

We have a civvies day the week before and ask for chocolate donations, even that's too much too ask of some. Even though, without the PTA, they'd be paying a lot more for school trips.

[Corris]

ebay - 'other' - or 'wholesale'.

[Seahorse]

You may well be doing this already but at my littlies' school they have a non uniform day the week before, the 'cost' of which is bringing in something for the raffle/tombola/cake stall etc. Ours is very general (lots of tins of value baked beans!) but you could make it just toys or games.

[veggiechicken]

Packets of seeds and a flowerpot?

[di]

We have a civvies day the week before but ask for chocolate donations for the chocolate tombola and other stalls.

Had a look on Ebay, might be an option.

Thanks. x

[northepaul]

How about approaching a local wholesaler and asking them to donate?

You could always offer them a free mention on the school web site?

[Florence Fennel]

How about asking at a big supermarket? The store managers often have a "charity budget" and may be willing to help out a local school.

[Corris]

for one of ours - it was a choose a square on a board raffle type thing - I wrote to local attractions, cinemas, bowling, everything from Pensthorpe to the Cromer Regal - and without exception they nearly all sent us back vouchers for free entry for a family.

I think I sent out about 55 letters and got around 42 prizes from them.

I've done it twice (two different schools in different counties, same target for the begging letters) and it works a treat - and works out as nice prizes, swimming in the local pool for a family is nearly £10 now - they sent us two.

[di]

Thanks, we've written several begging letters for Raffle prizes, also been in town today...couple of mugs and bags of coffee beans from Starbucks, hamper from Body Shop and books from Waterstones...several others have said they'll send vouchers.

Supermarkets, I've asked for Easter Eggs for the chocolate tombola...and Poundland.

What we're really after are the little 'tat' things, similar to what you'd get free on the front of a magazine...sadly the distributor in Ipswich aren't allowed to give them away anymore

Will ask at the two fast food places that do kiddies meals...not sure what they do with the excess toys.

Also, I had a quick look on Ebay...there were a few things that looked worth buying in, will make a list and take it to the next PTA meeting. (we usually have a lady come in with her stall of poundland type toys that kiddies can win, she pays us £6 and probably makes 10 times that, so thought we'd do it ourselves...just got to find the tat either for free or hugely knocked down prices)

[di]

We've still got about twenty cartons of juice that Asda donated at Christmas.