Items to donate to shelters

kiwimama

I regularly put our useful but no longer needed bits n bobs in the charity collection bags that are dropped through the letter box regularly but I have a few items that wouldnt be appropriate but are still in excellent condition and I thought could be useful to shelters/womens refuge etc.

Could anyone tell me if I'm just being silly or would things like baby onsies / toddler underpants / womens bra's & underpants in excellent condition (really and truly look brand new, I swear its not as ick as it sounds, mostly its when Ive brought the wrong style pack from M&S!!!) would be welcomed by shelters or if that kind of thing is completely out of the question?

I just think of situations when a woman has to leave an abusive home in a hurry with the children and no time to pack up everything they might need for a period of time away from the family home, these 'essentials' might be useful but I also understand that its a bit weird.

Errata

Put it this way - would you want to wear someone else's knickers? No matter how clean they looked or how unworn they were said to be? Shelters have basics like a couple of pairs of new knickers available to women.

McKneff

I never fill these bags now 99% of them are put through by profit making companie and give a percentage of the profits to the charity.
Read the bags carefully, I think its only BHF and Air Ambulance that do their own.

They take all their expenses off, all the salaires, this that and the other an then just give charities a small percentage of what is left.

Take it to a charity shop if you can and the charity gets 100%. Even if yu take innapropriate items they still make money out of them as rags to sell.

Savvy_Sue

kiwimama wrote: »

I regularly put our useful but no longer needed bits n bobs in the charity collection bags that are dropped through the letter box regularly but I have a few items that wouldnt be appropriate but are still in excellent condition and I thought could be useful to shelters/womens refuge etc.

Could anyone tell me if I'm just being silly or would things like baby onsies / toddler underpants / womens bra's & underpants in excellent condition (really and truly look brand new, I swear its not as ick as it sounds, mostly its when Ive brought the wrong style pack from M&S!!!) would be welcomed by shelters or if that kind of thing is completely out of the question?

I just think of situations when a woman has to leave an abusive home in a hurry with the children and no time to pack up everything they might need for a period of time away from the family home, these 'essentials' might be useful but I also understand that its a bit weird.

I wish I knew what baby onsies are, but leaving that aside, the only way to know is to ask the shelters what they can and can't use, because there's nothing worse than having items left by well meaning people who haven't done so, and they recipient organisation can't use them and may have to pay for disposal.

But with underwear, BNWT is IMO the only way to go ... I know knickers don't always come with tags, but still in the packaging - even open packaging - is the minimum.

It's a good thought, but always best to check it out!

CPfan

The Salvation Army takes donations of underwear. There may be a collection skip in a car park near you. I hope this helps.

[Deleted User]

Onsie .... One-sie = babygro (all-in-one)? I think.

tanith

I also never fill those bags that come through the door as the majority are just scams... I take all my donated stuff to a charity shop it more of a faff but at least I know that it will benefit a bona fida charity and not some business man/crook

kiwimama

I will give The Salvation Army a call, thanks for your replies Are the charity collection bags a total crock then? I usually only use the Age Concern or NSPCC ones, taking a bag of stuff to the charity shop on the bus with two kidlets doesnt sound like fun!!!!

kiwimama

Oh and sorry for typo, I meant onesie - babygrow / all in one / body suit

Ianna

Hi mate

Really pleased to see how much you're trying to reuse and recycle for a good cause! It really makes a difference and I wish everyone did what you're doing. I'm a big fan of giving to shelters too, they have so many families coming in and out and really need whatever you can give.

I hate throwing knickers out but the sad truth is that some things just have to be binned. No charity wants second hand knickers for obvious reasons although it is such a waste just binning them. There are a few things that you can do with bras - if they're nearly new then you can donate them to a refuge, I do that with ones that I've worn once or twice but don't quite fit and my refuge is happy with that. Postal wise there's bra appeal who sell them for breast cancer care and brabank who will be back next year. I've googled and there's also pathfinder dogs and this charity shop who would be thrilled to have bras.

A lot of charity bags are a scam, I found out after filling one with some great items and I was fuming! Now the only thing I use them for is lining my bin. There's a useful checklist here . Quick tips: look to see if there's a registered charity number, reliable phone number (not a mobile!) and website. Also when you read carefully a lot say that they're for developing countries but the small print says that they only give a small percentage or that they just sell to them which creates jobs. There's also the risk that the bag will be nicked off your doorstep so all in all it's just safer to take them to a charity shop.

BKAT_9

I remember by sister giving all the baby clother and toys and maternity bits and bods to a women's shelter. The person from the shelter came to the house to collect everything as obviously the address of the centre is confidential. I think she may be just goggled to find shelters in the area and then contacted them by email. I will check with her.