Volunteer toy repairers in Japan are hard at work mending broken toys in time for Christmas.

The "toy hospital" event is held by volunteer groups across the country.

One such group in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward opens its toy hospital every Tuesday. Seven volunteers repair about 500 toys annually.

The group says that at this time of year, it often receives items popular as Christmas gifts, such as music boxes.

A woman brought in a toy cash register she had bought for her 3-year-old daughter last Christmas.

She said she prefers to keep items that can be repaired instead of buying new ones.

She added that she hopes her daughter will play with the toy for years to come with her younger sister.

A man in his 70s brought a Santa Claus doll his late daughter had cherished when she was a child. His daughter passed away seven years ago.

He said he wants to keep the toy because it is full of family memories.

The volunteers said that a growing number of people buy secondhand toys online these days, partly due to rising prices, and bring them to toy hospitals for repairs.

A volunteer, Yabutani Takashi, said he encourages people to value their belongings rather than discard them easily. He added that volunteers feel happy when they see children jumping with joy upon receiving their repaired toys.