A BARBER isn’t letting lockdown spoil Christmas and has set up an initiative to help deliver toys to children in the borough.
Tony Batty and friend Liam Hardcastle had the idea to create the Barnsley Christmas Toy Bank to help give presents to children who may be affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
Since then, their Facebook page has received more than 1,500 likes and has donation drop-off spots across the borough.
“I know there are a lot of families out there who will be struggling this Christmas with furlough or redundancies because of the virus,” said Tony. “We wanted to help ease their worry and put a smile on the kids’ faces by giving them a present to open on December 25.”
The scheme has proven so popular that it has already gained council backing.
“The council said they would help us to distribute the toys to families who need it most,” added Tony. “It’s great that they have got on board, after we have only been running a week.
“We have had such a great response so far. I think this year Christmas will be hard and I think people are really in the spirit to help make someone’s Christmas a little bit brighter.
“I don’t want kids feeling upset on Christmas Day because they have nothing to open. Everyone deserves a great Christmas after this year.”
Tony is appealing for toys to be wrapped and donated to one of the ten official drop-off points.
The toys will then be distributed across the borough in time for Christmas Day.
To find out where to donate presents to, visit the Barnsley’s Christmas Toy Bank page on Facebook.
