Sydney Airport Lost Property Auction 2025

Supporting Swim Safety for Local Children

Since 2013, Sydney Airport’s lost property auctions have raised $1.9 million for charitable and community organisations.

In partnership with Sydney’s Inner West Council, proceeds this year will support local families struggling with cost-of-living pressures by providing swimming lessons for children. Learning to swim is crucial for water safety, helping children build awareness, coordination and confidence in the water.

To kickstart the initiative, Sydney Airport is donating $100,000, which will fund the equivalent of 4,000 free swimming lessons. The airport is hoping to raise a further $200,000 from the 2025 Lost Property Auction – the equivalent of another 8,000 free swimming lessons. Sydney Airport General Manager of Corporate Affairs, Josh Clements, said: “This auction is more than just a chance to score a great find, it’s about giving back to our local community.

“Together, the Inner West Aquatics team and Sydney Airport are committed to improving water safety, promoting health and wellbeing, giving more of our local children the chance to learn to swim.

“We’ve kicked this fund off with a $100,000 donation and hope the Lost Property Auction will help triple that amount.

“For every $25 raised, another child gets a free swimming lesson, equipping them with life-saving skills and confidence in the water, right here in the communities around the airport.”

The Inner West Aquatics team work with the Royal Life Saving Society to deliver water safety programs and Royal Life Saving Society Health Promotions Manager, Louise Smalley, said, “It’s brilliant to see Sydney Airport turning lost property into little swimmers.

“This initiative is a creative and impactful way to support local families who are struggling with the rising cost-of-living, and it will help save lives.

“Swimming is a vital life skill, but our research shows nearly half of Year 6 students in Australia can’t swim 50 metres and one in ten children aged five to fourteen have never had a swimming lesson.

“This program aims to help close the gap by giving children who need it free swimming lessons and access to water safety programs, and that’s a powerful way to support local families and build safer communities around the airport.”

Photo: Swim lessons at Annette Kellerman Aquatic Centre in Sydney | Photo Inner West Council

About the Sydney Airport Lost Property Auction

Last year, Sydney Airport welcomed 41.4 million passengers. In the first 3 months of 2025 alone, 10.4 million people passed through Sydney Airport’s three terminals. With thousands at the airport on any given day, it’s no wonder that things get left behind.

Sydney Airport has a dedicated team that works very hard to reunite these items with their owners. In the last year alone, they successfully returned more than 7,000 items to passengers.

The airport donates anything that remains unclaimed to local charities – or they are auctioned for charitable and community organisations in the annual Sydney Airport Lost Property Auction.

Photo: Unsplash/John Mcarthur

How To Join the Auctions

The Sydney Airport Lost Property collection includes five timed online auctions.

View – You may view all catalogues from Monday 2 June. Please keep an eye on Upcoming Auctions or join our newsletter via the form below.

Register – All bidders need to register, and you can do this quickly and easily by clicking the ‘Register to Bid’ link at the base of any lot description in the auction. You only need to register once to bid in any future auctions.

Bid – You can bid as soon as the auctions are live. Bidding on the first lot closes at the published auction closing time, with subsequent lots in that auction closing 30 seconds apart. Should there be bids within the final 30 seconds, bidding is extended for 5 minutes. Scroll down for more details on bidding.

Photo: Unsplash/Nathan Ansell

Auction Details

Tech & Gaming | Tuesday 10 June | 11am
Jewellery & Watches | Wednesday 11 June | 11am
Clothing & Shoes | Thursday 12 June | 11am
Sunglasses, Scarves & Accessories | Thursday 12 June | 2pm
Beauty, Alcohol, Home | Friday 13 June | 11am

Auction Contact: Casi Prischl

** Please note, bidding is available from Monday 2 June.
The above times are when the first lot of each auction closes. See below for full details.

Tips for first-time buyers

If you’re new to auctions, please be sure to read our How to Buy & Shipping pages. We also recommend that you:

• Click – the Auction Details link in the top menu bar on any page in the auction catalogue. This is where you find all terms & conditions including buyer fees.
• Read – the lot description carefully for details on item condition and dimensions.
• Look – at all photos to check condition.  These may show the items/s from several directions and also include any important markings.
• Consider – shipping costs. Our shipping department can provide quotes for small item postage (min. $25) and recommend carriers for larger items.
• Contact – us with any questions.

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Important Information for Bidders

Conditions of sale
Once the auction has closed, the sale is final and binding. As outlined on our website please treat the catalogue as a guide only. All items in these auctions are lost property. We do not guarantee the authenticity, brand or stamping on any item, or that it is fit for purpose. Items in this auction may be used and/or have transit and/or other damage. We endeavour to identify obvious damage, but any omission will not invalidate any sale.

How to bid
Each lot closes sequentially in lot order 30 seconds after the previous lot, i.e. if Lot 1 closes at 11am then Lot 2 will close at 11:00:30am and Lot 3 will close at 11:01am and so on. If a bid is placed within the last five minutes prior to closing, then the bidding time will be extended for that lot by 5 minutes. Bidding extensions continue for a maximum of two hours.

You can place individual bids at any time up until the close of a lot. You may also place a maximum bid in the system for any lot. The system will only bid on your behalf if another bid is placed on that lot. As an example, if a lot has a bid of $20 already and you leave a maximum bid of $100, then the system will execute your bid and you will be the high bidder at $25. If another bid is place for $50 then your next bid would be executed at $55 and so on. If another bid of $100 is placed, your bid will be recognised as it was placed first. If your bid is exceeded, you will receive a notification that you have been outbid.

Adjusting or cancelling bids
Should you wish to adjust your bid, you can do this by logging into your account, going to the ‘My Bid’ section and adjusting or cancelling your bid. You are able to cancel up to three bids in each sale and this can be completed up to two hours prior to the close of the auction. Please note Theodore Bruce is unable to cancel a bid on your behalf.

Payment
Once each auction has closed, successful bidders will receive an email with their invoice. Payment is required within two working days after auction close. Payment can be made via bank transfer or credit card (please note transaction fees for credit cards and debit cards).

Collection of goods
Goods are to be collected from our Parramatta Road Rooms at 118 Parramatta Road, Stanmore NSW. Please note you may park outside our building between 10am-3pm weekdays. We are open weekdays and from 10am to 3pm Saturday 14 June for collections.

Shipping
Theodore Bruce can provide a postage quote upon request. You are also welcome to organise shipping, or we can recommend third-party delivery services. Our inhouse Shipping Department can post items via Australia Post to Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane Metro starting from $25; to Perth, Tasmania, Darwin starting from $40.

For queries or assistance, please contact [email protected].

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Theodore Bruce Auctioneers & Valuers is Australia’s oldest family-run auction house, offering regular auctions in all collecting areas including fine arts, fashion, Asian & European decorative arts, books, Oceanic art and collectables. To stay informed, please join our mailing list, keep an eye on our Upcoming Auctions or follow us on Instagram.