For families doing it tough, the start of the school year can mean making hard choices between the basics children need for the classroom and other everyday costs. This summer, Australians have helped change that, raising over $1 million through the Officeworks Back to School Appeal – enough to help support 1511 students with the essentials and longer-term education support they need to start the year ready to learn.
In partnership with The Smith Family, the annual Appeal ran from 29 December 2025 to 8 February 2026, with all proceeds going directly to The Smith Family’s Learning for Life program.
Generous members of the community were able to make a donation directly in their closest Officeworks store or online when making their Back to School purchases, as well as by buying a box of bounce balls at their local store, which sold out in most locations.
By state, New South Wales raised the most with $325,978 supporting 467 students, while Queensland raised $255,550 supporting 365 students, Victoria and Tasmania raised $275,790 supporting 394 students, followed by South Australia ($49,553 and 71 students) and Western Australia ($69,722 and 99 students).
Three Queensland stores made it into the top five fundraising outlets nationally. Brisbane’s inner-west Milton store was the highest fundraising store nationally with $21,269, supporting 30 students and was closely followed by the team Toowoomba, in regional Queensland, raising $16,036 and supporting 23 students. Windsor, in Brisbane’s inner-north was the fourth highest fundraiser with $11,042.96, supporting 15 students.
In New South Wales, Sydney’s Pitt St store raised $15,453.22 to come in third, supporting 22 students and North Ryde rounded up the top five raising $12,824.30 to support 18 students.
State breakdown (to Feb 8, 2026, in-store only):
| State | Amount Raised |
| New South Wales | $325,978 |
| Queensland | $255,550 |
| Victoria | $275,790 |
| Western Australia | $69,722 |
| South Australia | $49,553 |
A further $65,023 was raised via online donations, with the Officeworks Support Office and Customer Fulfilment Centre teams also contributing over $10,000 to the Appeal.
Officeworks Managing Director John Gualtieri said, “We’re incredibly grateful to the thousands of Australians who contributed to this year’s Officeworks Back to School Appeal. At Officeworks, we believe every child deserves equal access to education, and the generosity shown by our customers and team members will make a genuine difference for children experiencing educational disadvantage. Together, we’ve helped ensure more young Australians can start the school year with the supplies and confidence they need to learn and thrive.”
The Smith Family CEO Doug Taylorsaid the partnership with Officeworks is helping transform educational outcomes for young Australians.
“Providing early support in a child’s education creates lasting positive impacts that shape their future trajectory. Our data shows that 85% of Learning for Life students successfully transition into employment, education, or training within two and a half years of completing school.
“The ongoing partnership with Officeworks, combined with the generosity of their customers and team members, enables us to equip more children with the essential resources they need to begin each school year with confidence and opportunity.”
