Christmas has come early for Greenwich & Bexley Community Hospice after they received a bumper crop of toys following a special donation drive on ITV’s Daybreak for national hospice charity Help the Hospices, the umbrella organisation for the hospice sector.

The breakfast TV show asked viewers to donate toys in leading family leisure retailer Toys R Us for the Toy Box appeal throughout mid-November (18-25).

More than 6,000 toys were donated across the UK as a direct result of the appeal.

Toys are used at Greenwich & Bexley Community Hospice to raise much needed funds through Christmas Raffles and are also donated to the children of people with life-limiting illnesses who are cared for by Greenwich & Bexley Community Hospice.

Sarah O'Halloran, Community Fundraising Manager at Greenwich & Bexley Community Hospice, said:

“The Toy Box appeal really struck a chord with ITV’s viewers who gave so generously.

“I collected three boxes of donated toys from Toys R Us Ilford yesterday, I can’t thank them enough.

“The appeal really helped raise public awareness about the value of hospice care in a very engaging way.”

Toy Box presenter Mark Wright, said: “Daybreak’s Toy Box appeal is a great way of giving a little Christmas treat to those in hospices across the holiday season. Whether it’s a small toy, or a larger gift, it will certainly bring some festive cheer”.

The Toy Box appeal is linked to ITV’s Text Santa, as Help the Hospices is one of six chosen charities for this. Toys R Us have agreed that for every toy donated, they will donate £1 to the Text Santa appeal.