The Great Debate: Should You Throw Our Your Kids’ Old Toys?

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All parents eventually have the Great Debate. Your kids grow up, they grow out of their old toys and you’re left with dozens of things around the house that nobody uses. We’re talking old action figures, old video games, different soft toys and everything else like that. What should you do with all of this…well…junk?! 

Your instinct is to throw it away or donate it all to charity. In fact, one of you may be making this exact argument. The other is a bit more sentimental – they don’t want to throw things away and think it makes more sense to keep ahold of everything. It’s a debate that rages on for weeks or months, but who is correct? Should you throw your kids’ old toys out or keep them? In this post, we entertain both sides of the argument to see if this helps you come to the right conclusion. 

Yes, you should throw your kids’ old toys out

First of all, having loads of old toys around the house makes it look cluttered. It’s also way harder to clean your home because you have to move stuff out of the way. All signs point to removing the toys as the better option from a cleanliness and space-saving point of view. 

Plus, your kids aren’t using them, so they’re going to waste. Doesn’t it make more sense to donate the toys to charity, so someone else can take full advantage of them?  This all sounds impossible to argue against – until you see the reasons for keeping the toys…

No, you should keep your kids’ old toys

Sure, the toys can take up a lot of space – which is why you move them into storage boxes. From here, you can take them up to the attic or even pay to have them kept in self-storage containers. Another option is to get your hands on some good shed bases and then build a garden shed to create your own storage solution for old things you don’t wish to throw away. This takes care of the space-consuming issues, but there’s more…

Who knows how valuable your kids’ toys will be in the future? What if something they have becomes very valuable and sells for hundreds, maybe even thousands of pounds in the future? It seems silly to get rid of this, particularly if you can put it away in storage somewhere. 

Then, there’s the argument of keeping the toys for future kids. If you only have one child, who’s to say you won’t want more? Hanging onto old things saves money in the future and prevents you from creating more waste by having to buy more toys. 

If we’re being honest, those are some pretty powerful arguments in favour of keeping the toys. The decision should ultimately come down to your position as a family. For one, do you have enough space in your home to store things out of the way? If so, it could be worth holding onto some toys if you either think they’ll be valuable in the future (like soft toys or old video games) or if you plan on having more kids. 

For those of you really limited in space and with no plans on adding to your family, it’s hard to argue that getting rid of the toys isn’t the best option. If you do opt for this route, be sure to donate as many of your toys as possible so they can be put to better use.