Feel like you’re home has been overtaken by kids’ toys? With the average Aussie kid having more than 100 toys, but only playing with approximately 10 of the favourites, there seems to be unnecessary clutter and a lot of waste. And it keeps growing. With another birthday party coming up, which will end in another 20 plastic nick-nacks, do you have the room to clutter your existence further?

The receiving family might worry about finding extra storage room, but think about how much it’s costing every parent in the class! With about 25 parties per year based on today’s classroom sizes at an average $20 each gift, that’s about $12,500 in gifts. Surely there’s a better way?

Some mums have found a better way.

By joining forces and organising group gifts for birthday parties. Instead of 25 mediocre gifts, the kids get something they really want. In some instances, a portion of the money is also donated to a charity. If that sounds like a hassle to organise, here’s the answer. It’s the 21st-century guys, what are you doing collecting money the old-fashioned (painful) way? There’s a simple website that does the whole thing for you. Grouptogether, started by two Sydney mums, makes this simple. In as little as three minutes you’ve set up a collection page. You share the link and bingo, you’re done. Parents chip in online (no pressure) and add a cute picky and message to the printable card. They even send polite reminders so there are no awkward conversations chasing up cash-strapped stragglers. Hey presto! You’re done. Some parents offer to set it up for the whole class. They just opt in when it’s their child’s party. No signing up. It’s free to start a collection.

One gift for the birthday child, some ‘giving back’ too.

Recently, a Melbourne mum, Lisa Ezekiel used Grouptogether to teach her son’s kindy class about giving back by introducing a special birthday campaign. She approached the class parents and suggested a collection for each child’s birthday. $10 was the set amount with 50% of each contribution being donated to a charity. With 22 kids in the class, each child received $110 towards a special gift and by the end of the year they had collected more than $2,000 for charity. A guest speaker from the chosen charity was invited show the kids where the money collected would be going and how it would help.

“It works on two levels. Firstly, it saves the parents so much time, hassle and money because they no longer have to go out, find a gift and there’s not much you can get for ten dollars, As a bonus, the kids get to learn about making a difference and being charitable, while still getting a great amount of money for their birthday. It really is a win-win.” Lisa said.

She hoped to motivate more class parents to set up group collections with a charity component.

Amanda Stewart saved her class thousands of dollars and 198 trips to the shops for birthday gifts

Another Mum, Amanda Stewart told us she has used Grouptogether for group birthday gifts for her son’s friends. An online collection of $20 each ensured the birthday child receives a big ticket item they really want such as a bike, electric guitar or scooter. It puts paid to the no more piles of cheap toys children don’t need or want.

“So far by collecting for these 10 parties I have saved parents 198 trips to the shops and $3960 (if their normal spend was $40 a gift). So easy and much better all round.”

Think Grouptogether could be the answer you’re looking for? Try it today.