Can't we donate Mum to charity?

We are proud to present our own charity shop video.

It is titled "Can't we donate Mum to charity?"

 

Everybody who contributed volunteered. No cash was spent. We had enourmous fun. There is lots of very funny footage which we have not yet published. If we get a lot of clicks, we might publish more. Please spread the link to all your contacts in the UK. You'll be laughing out loud.

Sefton Council is cutting out charity shops

Recently I read in the Champion newspaper that Sefton Council urges people to "recycle" their clothes, shoes, etc. in pink bags to avoid landfill. The bags will be collected from the doorstep on a weekly basis.

Landfill? Has anybody ever disputed the quantity of clothing that actually goes into landfill? I believe the numbers come from the rag companies. Has anybody defined the term "recycling"? Most of the stuff is sold onto foreign markets as second hand clothing for quite a bit of money. Hardly anything is actually reprocessed and transformed into something else.

As a charity shop volunteer I am appalled by this scheme. Charity shops are already suffering from people being encouraged by "Cash4clothes" points to sell their unwanted clothes, shoes and accessories instead of donating them. If people no longer take their stuff to charity shops they will have to close down. Not only will there be a lot of empty shops all over Sefton when they have to close down, but employees will get the sack too.

Charities not only depend on donations to continue their valuable work, but they also provide a source of affordable clothing for LOCAL people on a tight budget. Only what is unsaleable is then sold on to a recycling company. 

I wrote to Sefton Cllr. Patricia Hardy and asked her to disclose the details of  the Council's arrangement with a rag company that collects the bags? How much money will Sefton Council get out of this "recycling" deal?

Recently 'cash  for clothes' points have appeared across the United Kingdom which sell clothes for a profit abroad. Second hand clothes mean big business to some. This means the local charities are losing out.

The idea of charity  and charity shops is deeply ingrained in the British psyche. If charities don't get donations of clothing this means that people on a low budget no longer have access to good clothes at an affordable price, because all the clothing is going directly abroad.

Local charity shops will have to close down and charities will no longer be able to work for the good of society.

You may wonder what happens to the goods that are not saleable in a charity shop. They are sold on for recycling to the ragman, but only after customers have had a chance to buy them. At that point even the rags are a source of income for the charity shops instead of going into a landfill.

By selling your clothing you may get a small amount of money for a lot of clothes which most likely is far too little compared to what you spent when you bought them in the first place. But imagine how much your clothing and other goods could help others. Have you thought about the feel-good-factor making a donation may give you?

Donate your clothing - save the charity shops.