Unaffordable for many struggling families, LEGO was the first item the Housing Trust received from Good360 Australia. Photo: Housing Trust.
It’ll be found under countless trees this Christmas, but for disadvantaged Illawarra youths, LEGO has transcended the role of toy to become the building block of future opportunities, thanks to a local charity unlike any other.
LEGO was the first item the Housing Trust received from Good360 Australia, an organisation that connects charities, disadvantaged schools and society’s most vulnerable with unsold or surplus non-perishable goods, services and disaster recovery essentials, thus creating what Woonona founder Alison Covington calls a “circle of good”.
When Housing Trust officials were first approached by an organisation offering them free new non-perishable goods for its disadvantaged tenants, they looked for the catch.
“At first we thought they wanted to sell the goods to us and like most charities, we don’t have the budget for that. But it turns out they were giving it to us,” CEO Amanda Winks says.
“We couldn’t believe it at first. Here was a free resource, and one that we knew our tenants really needed – particularly amid a cost-of-living crisis when so many are struggling to cover the basics.”
Good360 currently supports 133 charities and disadvantaged schools across the Illawarra, distributing more than 800,000 items with a combined value of more than $11 million.
Diverted from a tragic destiny of being wasted or even worse, at the tip, these items spanning categories of education, home, hygiene and play help charities bridge major divides.
“Most people think of LEGO as a toy, but we know there are educational advantages for children to creating and building things with it,” Amanda says. ”However, it can be quite expensive. Some of the sets we’ve received from Good360 retail for over $100. That’s out of reach for a lot of low-income families.
“We have hundreds of children living in our properties. We’re a good conduit for distribution … The LEGO sets are very popular among our tenants. And how wonderful for these kids to be able to be a part of what their peers are experiencing.”
Good360’s Alison Covington assembling care packs with Family Services Australia’s Brett Fahey and Federal Member for Whitlam Stephen Jones. Photo: Kellie O’Brien.
Since their relationship with Good360 began in July 2019, Housing Trust has received LEGO, NIKE shoes and clothing and Optus SIM cards with 12 months of free calls and data, all with a combined value of more than $70,000.
Amanda says while these goods are simply “off-a-shelf things” for some people, for others they unlock opportunities.
“For example, a pair of joggers is a step towards health and fitness that can change a person’s life. A SIM card – data – is vital in this day and age. The digital divide profoundly disadvantages people.
“To most of us, these look like everyday, off-the-shelf things, but ordinary life can be very hard for the people who don’t have them.”
Housing Trust eventually parlayed the LEGO into a connection with the University of Wollongong, which runs popular STEM workshops using LEGO for robotics.
Together they created supported spaces where the children of Housing Trust tenants could attend workshops. This in turn led to a project providing funding and scholarships for people with disadvantaged backgrounds to get into STEM studies.
Amanda says that’s the real beauty of the Good360 “circle of good” – it tends to expand like a ripple in water.
“Something that started small – a toy, really – has opened up a new trajectory for children of low-income families.”
This year, the Good360 Australia Christmas Toy Drive aims to distribute $20 million of toys and gifts to bring joy to people across the country. Simply select a virtual gift from the range – starting at $1 for the equivalent of a single toy up to $500 for a virtual van full of presents. Every virtual gift triggers a real delivery of toys, gifts and essential goods diverted from landfill into the hands of children and families in need.
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