Merry Go Round Toy & Leisure Library

Volunteers, Committee Members and Friends of Merry Go Round

Our volunteers and committee members come from a wide range of backgrounds, with different skills and abilities, many with that most important experience of being a parent. We are always on the lookout for new volunteers for both toy libraries, whether to work with the children and families directly or to assist with committee work or join Friends of Merry Go Round

Volunteers

Everyone who helps our charity in a non-paid capacity is counted as a volunteer, including committee members. Apart from being on the committee, there are lots of other ways volunteers can support us including helping at fundraising events, toy library sessions or with publicity.

Volunteers use their specific skills as and when they feel they can – this can include making cakes for cake stalls, mending toys, taking leaflets and posters to toddler groups, helping at car boot sales, writing articles for the newsletter, updating toy databases etc.

Tasks for volunteers helping in the toy libraries include:

• • helping to set up
  • checking toys which are returned
  • cleaning toys
  • helping keep tidy during the session
  • welcoming customers
  • occasional cataloguing etc

Committee members

Committee members need to be members of the toy library and are usually Trustees of the charity and as such have responsibility for ensuring the toy libraries are run in accordance with the law and our Constitution (we do have Trustee’s Indemnity Insurance which covers against accidental mistakes). Committee members:

• manage the staff, promoting good working practice and conditions
• make decisions about the running of the toy libraries
• make a commitment to attend meetings (approx every 2 months with refreshments) including the AGM and our summer and winter socials
• use their skills to support the toy library – some are officers eg Chair, Vice Chair, Treasurer or Secretary, each of which has its own responsibilities
• produce the newsletter and help with publicity
• link in with everything else going on in the project eg fundraising

Friends of Merry Go Round

This is a new and exciting opportunity for anyone who has an interest in supporting our charity and helping it become sustainable. You can become a Friend of Merry Go Round by getting involved with fund raising activities and ideas or with promotional events to raise our profile in the local community. We hope to hold one or two major fundraising events per year plus other smaller events.

You can choose whether to work as part of a group or you might want to do something as an individual or family, or you could just make a donation. Other organisations such as local companies can also become a Friend.

To find out more please contact us using the form on the contact page, visit or phone during toy library sessions  or  contact our Chair Pat on 01392 877907

To ensure that vulnerable children are protected, we carry out a vetting procedure for any volunteers working directly with children or families and also for committee members. This involves security checks by the Police, and character references.