Stop giving us your junk, charity shops urge
Store bosses deluged with disgusting items after clear-outs ask public to be thoughtful about donation
A pile of items left outside a charity shop in Urmston, Greater Manchester, last year
Credit: REUTERS
Charity shop bosses have urged people to stop donating patently unsellable items, as they are deluged by mountains of bags from spring cleans.
The Charity Retail Association (CRA) has warned the public to avoid dropping off disgusting or really badly broken pieces to their local shop, as they end up having to be thrown away.
Its warning comes amid an influx of donations, believed to be the result of many Britons spending lockdowns decluttering their homes.
BBC News
By Rebecca Wearn
image captionSara Tilston, manager of Stockport hospice charity Beechwood Cancer Care, which is only open to shoppers, not droppers, this week.
People should call and check before they drop off donations at charity shops, a trade association has warned.
Despite strong sales since shops reopened, many are being flooded with goods they cannot sell, the Charity Retail Association said.
Chairman Robin Osterley said: We have two asks of the generous public. Be thoughtful - is this stuff you d be prepared to buy yourself? And the second is to contact the shop before you roll up with armfuls of goods.
Charity Retail Association asks generous public to ‘be thoughtful’
Monday’s reopening of non-essential outlets in England saw record sales at many charity shops. The British Heart Foundation recorded more than £1m in sales, with “furniture proving particularly popular”, The Guardian says.
The Salvation Army made record sales on Monday, Oxfam reported a 77% rise compared with 2019 and Cancer Research UK took half a million pounds – “more than double what it was expecting”, the BBC reports.
With customer numbers and item donations on the rise, the Charity Retail Association is asking donors to “think before giving”.
“We have two asks of the generous public,” said chairman Robin Osterley. “Be thoughtful – is this stuff you’d be prepared to buy yourself? And the second is to contact the shop before you roll up with armfuls of goods.”
Charities report bumper day of sales as locked-down shops reopen theguardian.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from theguardian.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.