Yodel has partnered with children’s charity Play Action International to support the Play Box Appeal and provide 50,000 Ukrainian children with toys.
The appeal aims to provide boxes of toys to Ukrainian children arriving in the UK over the coming weeks, as well as to Ukrainian children seeking refuge in Eastern Europe. It has been created to help trauma-affected children process their experiences, express their thoughts and feelings and reduce stress through play.
Working alongside Yodel, the charity aims to offer a mechanism for UK children and the public to provide shoeboxes full of toys for Ukrainian children of primary school age who are seeking refuge across the country. On Play International’s website, those looking to make a shoebox donation will be directed to print off a label via Yodel’s website. Donors will be able to choose any of Yodel’s 6,000 drop-off points that are within its Collect+ network. The donations will then be processed and delivered to Play Action International’s partner organizations, which will distribute donations to those in need.
Mike Hancox, the CEO of Yodel, said, “We’re very proud to be partnering with Play Action International to launch the Play Box Appeal and to be able to support Ukrainian children and families at such a difficult time. Our network will help much-needed toys and play items to be collected across the UK. Our Collect+ Delivered by Yodel service offers collection points across the country, giving people an easy way to donate.”
Murielle Maupoint, CEO at Play Action International, added, “Ukraine’s children are going through incredibly traumatic experiences. By supporting them with toys, we hope to give them space to begin to process and recover from the experience. We’re excited that Yodel has agreed to support our appeal; with the support of the business’s network, we will be able to ensure that children affected by the conflict are comforted by the generosity of people across the UK and know they have not been forgotten.”