A fitness instructor based in Weymouth has once again donated trolleys worth of toys to the Toy Appeal with the help of his gym.

Every year Andy Sloan goes shopping with his children for presents to donate to the Toy Appeal, and for several years now people at the Ultimate Body Club where he works have also been getting involved.

All the toys and money donated will go towards giving underprivileged children, who otherwise would go without, a present this Christmas.

Andy Sloan said: “Every year I go with my kids Luca and Thea to pick out presents for the Toy Appeal, it helps to teach them to do nice things. We always get a few trolleys, and now the clients at the club donate as well.

“Not everyone gets what they want or need at Christmas, so it is nice to help.”

Despite the pandemic, last year the Toy Appeal received the highest amount of donations ever - £8,348.

Debbie Hellaby, Newsquest Group Promotions Manager, said: “Sourcing, collecting and organising the toys for hundreds of children is not an easy task - the toys are usually matched to the age and interest of each child individually.

“We are delighted to accept the support of the Weymouth Rotary Club to facilitate the collection and collation of toys.”

We were unable to put our toy collections bins out last year due to the pandemic but they went out this year. We’re grateful to Weymouth Rotary Club whose members have helped collect the toys.

We asked readers to give a thought to needy children this Christmas, and buy one extra present to go in a Dorset Echo Toy Appeal bins. The bins have now been collected and we are no longer accepting donations.

All the toys collected will be distributed before Christmas to children who really appreciate them.