IKEA Soft Toys Campaign raises 12.4 million Euros for UNICEF and Save the Children in 2012.

Thank you to IKEA customers and co-workers for helping to raise €12.4 million during IKEA's beloved Soft Toy holiday season campaign for children's education.

IKEA customers and co-workers have partnered with the IKEA Foundation on a €12.4 million gift for UNICEF and Save the Children projects to help realise every child's right to a quality education.

The IKEA Foundation donates €1 for each of the 12.4 million soft toys, children's books and children's meals sold in over 300 IKEA stores worldwide from November 1 to December 31.  Since 2003, the annual Soft Toy campaign has generated €47.5 million in donations, helping eight million children in close to 40 countries.

The IKEA Foundation believes all children should have access to quality education. Thanks to this donation, UNICEF and Save the Children will implement 18 projects in 16 countries: UNICEF's share will go to Schools for Africa projects in seven countries and two projects in Russia and China; and Save the Children's share will support education for children of the most marginalised groups (minorities and children with disabilities) in Asia (Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Myanmar, Philippines) and Eastern Europe (Lithuania and Romania).

The donations will help UNICEF and Save the Children train teachers in child-friendly teaching methods, supply educational materials like pencils, books, bags, rebuild schools and provide better water and toilet facilities, and increase school attendance rates. 

"The innovative IKEA Soft Toy campaign continues to show astounding results year by year, making it the most strategic global cause-marketing campaign for children in the world today. The beauty of the campaign is that it not only benefits children all over the world by giving them the opportunity to go to school, it also raises awareness amongst children and grown-ups about some of the challenging situations children are faced with today. I would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to IKEA customers and co-workers at IKEA stores around the world, who have contributed to the phenomenal success of the 2011 Soft Toy campaign," said Elisabeth Dahlin, Chairman, Lead Agency for the IKEA Foundation Collaboration and Secretary General, Save the Children Sweden.

The Gift that Gives Twice

In Australia, IKEA stores also run "give twice" activities, where customers can choose to give back the soft toy that they purchase. The gift is then given to children in Save the Children's programs around the country. You can find the "give twice" boxes at the exit of each IKEA store.

From the 2011 campaign we received over 1,000 soft toys to hand out to children in our programs which is an amazing effort! Toys have been distributed all over Australia including -

Harmony Day

Melbourne families enjoyed a free afternoon of African drumming, face painting, a jumping castle and barbecue at Save the Children's Harmony Day celebrations on Wednesday, March 21. We hosted the Family Fun Event at the Fitzroy Adventure Playground, which brought together families from a wide variety of cultural backgrounds. Many of the young children come from refugee or recent arrival families, so we were pleased to celebrate cultural diversity in a fun way. The children loved their new IKEA soft toys!

Child Friendly Space - Numurkah Recovery Centre

Save the Children's Mobile Playbus staff set up a Child Friendly Space at the Numurkah Recovery Centre for the Shire of Moira following the recent flooding. The Centre is for families who have been affected to visit and access essential services such as Centrelink. Our space is there to provide activities for the kids while the parents are accessing these services. We bought a big bag of IKEA toys along and the staff gave them to the children as they were leaving the Centre to take home.

Sydney Mobile Play Scheme Christmas party

Every year, Save the Children's Play Scheme organises Christmas parties for the families who attend playgroup throughout the year. These families come from disadvantaged areas of Inner City and Western Sydney and often have little or no access to important services. Language barriers, poverty, issues of abuse, unemployment and trauma are some of the causes of isolation and non-engagement with the community that these families deal with.

Our Play Scheme is a free service that provides families with access to trained staff, quality play resources and time to connect with other families. The Play Scheme staff support families with parenting and can also link them to other community based services.
The IKEA donations were a generous and much needed contribution to our Christmas events. Our Western Sydney party was held at Thurina Park in Villawood and was attended by several children from the Villawood Immigration Detention Centre, as well as many refugee families. Western Sydney is home to over 65% of NSW's refugees and many of them struggle to find employment or adequate housing. The children's faces lit up when they received their toys and the parents were very appreciative.

Human stories

From Unspeakably Shy to Successful Student, Inclusive Education Pilot Project Prevails in Albania

"I want to become a teacher and teach small children," says 10-year old Fjoralba, schoolbag on her back, she's happy to tell you about her friends, everything her class is learning, and how much she loves her 4th grade teacher. What a difference! Two years ago, Fjoralba was painfully shy, spoke only single words, and couldn't pay attention. Motor skill challenges kept her from holding a pen, much less running, playing or taking care of herself, so a parent always had to be in class with her.

Today, she can read, write complex sentences, recite beautifully and do simple math. Her motor skills are so improved, that she can play games and exercise during physical education. She has become totally independent.

Everything changed once Fjoralba joined Save the Children's Inclusive Education project, supported by the IKEA Foundation with funds donated from the annual holiday Soft Toys Campaign at IKEA stores worldwide. Providing direct and individual support to children with disabilities, this pilot project helps children participate in mainstream education where they can develop to their full potential. Fjoralba's Individual Education Plan - designed with her teacher, father, and school psychologist - is tailored to her needs.

Attitudes toward children with disabilities have also improved. Thanks to community awareness efforts and training for children, parents and teachers, Fjoralba is not only accepted as an equal by classmates, but also respected for her strong personality and sensitivity.

Helping disadvantaged children learn in their local language and succeed in school in Vietnam

Lots of kids are anxious about going to school, but 8-year old Tung was worried he wouldn't even understand the teachers. Tung's parents left four years ago looking for work, leaving his grandparents to raise him in their home village of Dong Hong in Quang Ninh Province, Vietnam, where they speak their local language.

That makes Vietnamese a second language for Tung, and made him and his relatives feel like outsiders from mainstream education. "My cousins often skipped school," Tung says explaining what made him wary. "They didn't understand what the teacher was saying. I really wanted to go to class, learn new things and see friends but I was afraid I was going to be like them."

That was before Tung joined Save the Children's innovative bilingual learning program, which is supported by the IKEA Foundation. Today, Tung is in third grade at Dong Hong School, where teachers say he's an excellent, hardworking, and confident student who's eager to help classmates with their studies.  "My teaching assistant is wonderful," Tung says. "She explains things that I don't understand in my home language. If I have questions, my teacher and my teaching assistant will both help me out."

Part of the first group of students to join this bilingual education program, Tung is not only a happy child enjoying school today, he plans to keep going. "I wish to continue learning and move on to secondary school," Tung says.

Giving Children With Challenges A Chance: Last Year, Viktor Couldn't Go To School - These Days, He Never Wants To Leave!

Born with cerebral palsy, 12-year old Viktor doesn't let his difficulties deter him, in fact every Saturday he plays football on a team for disabled children. But even though he's in sixth grade, this is Viktor's first year in a real school. Until last Autumn, old attitudes meant that like most disabled children in Russia, Viktor had to be home-schooled.

Then, he enrolled at the Kamennogorsk primary school as a part of a pilot project implemented by Save The Children, with support from the IKEA Foundation, to mainstream children with challenges into schools that support their special needs as they enjoy classes together with other students.

Since a special school wasn't an option, she seized the chance to enrol Viktor in this program. "I really enjoy biology, history and natural sciences," Victor says.

This "Education for Every Child" pilot project is introducing the inclusive education concept, improving teacher skills, and increasing access for disabled children at seven schools and two day care centres in this Northwest region of Russia.

Since inclusive education is still such a new concept here, only the bravest parents and children have signed up so far. With such shining examples to lead them, there's hope that many more families will join Viktor and his mom in choosing this path to success.

Buy a Soft Toy from any IKEA store in Australia between Nov 1st - Dec 24th so that we can continue to support children's education around the world.