Busy Bees at Toowoomba Central give back by supporting domestic violence centre

One of the more troublesome outcomes of the COVID 19 pandemic has been the rise in incidents of family violence, leaving children at risk of immediate and ongoing harm.

Charities which support those experiencing family violence are experiencing increased demand for their services, and are under pressure to ensure that children and families are supported in a practical and tangible way as the pressures of the Christmas period contribute to emotional and financial stress. 

Recognising these challenges, the team at Busy Bees at Toowoomba Central are working with the Domestic Violence Action Centre (DVAC) through their ‘Busy Bags’ Christmas Appeal. 

DVAC is a not-for-profit organisation located in Toowoomba and Ipswich who work with communities including the surrounding districts of Chinchilla and Warwick towards the prevention and elimination of domestic and family violence.

Determined to do more than simply be aware of family violence as an issue and support children attending their services, the Busy Bees team built on the year long focus within the organisation, gratitude, with service manager Sandy Kimmins telling local publication The Toowoomba Chronicle “I believe that giving to those in need can make us feel as though we are a part of something greater than just ourselves.”

The Busy Bees at Toowoomba Central children and families began the donation initiative by calling for items to place in ‘Busy Bags’. Each gift contains a backpack, pencil case, exercise books, stationery, a small toy, book, socks, towel, underwear and pyjamas. 

“We have always planned to do a drive for DVAC at Christmas time so that we can help support families in adding a little extra to their children’s Christmas stockings because often families requesting the DVAC service have very little belongings and funds,” Ms Kimmins said.

As well as offering practical support to children and families, the exercise has helped the children attending the service to see “all the good things they can offer the world with a little bit of kindness, and selflessness.”

“Giving back to the communities across all 66 Services operating nationally is extremely important to us,” Busy Bees Early Learning Australia COO, Fiona Alston said. 

“We want to help all children have the best start in life and encourage our Services to continue looking for ways to help make this happen within their communities”.

More information about Busy Bees Early Learning Australia and their service offerings can be found on their website, here. 

To access the original coverage of this story, please see here.