1. Our Story
Clothe and Feed started in March 2018 being inspired to help relieve clothing and food poverty for vulnerable people and their children throughout the North East. We employ six staff and already have 18 volunteers who do an amazing job collecting, organising and delivering our service to over 4,500 people each year. Our mission is:
“To help relieve poverty and financial hardship in North East England by providing emergency food, clothing, essential toiletries and other household items to individuals and families in need”
The Covid19 crisis has hit our vulnerable families really hard in the North East and the demand for our services continues to grow. We provide our vulnerable families with:
1. Emergency Food Parcels either from our shops, bases or delivered by our van direct to homes.
2. Toiletries including sanitary products, toilet paper, soap and other cleaning products.
3. Essential Baby Supplies including Baby buggies, chairs, cots and prams, Baby clothes, nappies, baby boxes and baby food.
4. Help for Victims Suffering from Domestic Abuse and Social Isolation by offering a friendly voice, a listening ear and making links with local refuges and statutory agencies where needed.
5. Good quality school uniforms, footwear and PE kits. We have an incredibly large stock of school uniforms and clothing in all sizes from over 100 schools throughout the NE.
6. Warm coats, winter wear and footwear for all ages.
7. Formal & Interview Wear including suits, and special occasion wear for interviews, weddings & christenings
The cost of these items are prohibitively expensive for many young mums, families and individuals and often children go without the necessities many of us take for granted.
Our mission is:
“To help relieve poverty and financial hardship in North East England by providing emergency food, clothing, essential toiletries and other household items to individuals and families in need”
Clothe and Feed are a charity registered with the Charity Commission (Charity Number 1177545) and are set up as a non-profit making Community Interest Company (Company Number CEO13532). We employ six staff and already have 18 volunteers who do an amazing job collecting, organising and delivering our service to over 4,500 people each year. Our main hub is at Cobalt Business Park where we already have a massive stock of school uniforms, shoes, PE kits, warm coats, baby essentials, formal / interview / special occasion wear and children’s books and presents. We have three trustees who meet at least four times a year, and we have Rob Turnbull who leads our charity and is adept at negotiating great deals to ensure our resources are stretched to maximize our benefits to our vulnerable families and children.
The Covid19 crisis is putting additional pressures on vulnerable families and individuals who face additional financial pressures, uncertainty about their jobs, social isolation and even increased levels of domestic abuse. We provide a listening ear and can provide help and advice to those suffering from abuse. Our food parcels, free school uniforms (which can cost up to £300) helps keep families and older people warm, to reduce their heating bills and help to keep them out of debt - a downward spiral that can result in them losing their home
There has never been a better time to donate to our Clothe and Food Charity, and there has never been such need from our vulnerable families - £3000 will make an enormous difference. Please donate today to help us to help our most deprived children, families and older people at the time of their greatest need !
2. Our Project
Our project is seeking to raise at least £3000 to pay the travel expenses of a further 6 volunteers who do such an incredible job collecting, organising and delivering our services to deprived children, families and older people who have been devastated by the COVID19 crisis. Our volunteers are the face of our charity to vulnerable families, helping and supporting them at their time of most need. Recruiting 6 additional volunteers will help us to:
1. Help over 2400 vulnerable children, families and older people. There has never been such need from our vulnerable families – Aviva Communty Fund will help keep vulnerable families together and give babies and children a much better start in life.
2. Collect and distribute over 900 emergency food and toiletries parcels either from our shops, bases or delivered by our van direct to homes. As well as food, the parcels will include sanitary products, toilet paper, soap and other cleaning products essential to cope with COVID19.
3. Deliver essential baby supplies including baby buggies, chairs, cots and prams, baby clothes, nappies, baby boxes and baby food for over 300 mothers, babies and young children.
4. Help over 100 victims suffering from Domestic Abuse and Social Isolation by offering a friendly voice, a listening ear and making links with local refuges and statutory agencies where appropriate.
5. Provide free school uniforms, PE kit and other clothing for over 500 children. We have an incredibly large and well organised stock of good quality school uniforms and clothing in all sizes from over 100 schools throughout the North East. We help children and their families to avoid the embarrassment or even sanctions associated with missing PE or turning up for school without the correct school uniform.
6. Provide warm coats, winter wear and footwear for all ages for over 300 vulnerable families and older people.
7. Offer a free hire service for formal wear including interview suits and special occasion wear for weddings, christenings and funerals. Over 200 vulnerable families will no longer need to invest in expensive clothing that will only be used a few times.
8. Offer free children’s books and presents for over 200 children - making sure that vulnerable children don’t miss out at Chistmas and birthdays.
9. Recruit an additional 10 businesses to support our charity helping us to secure a further £5000 in cash donations, 100 days of staff volunteer time, and to collect over 2000 items of clothing, food and essential supplies for us to recycle to babies, children, vulnerable families and older people.
10. Help our charity to become more sustainable and resilient by diversifying our funding sources
Many of our beneficiaries are referred to us by local authorities and housing associations, but we also promote our service through a website, Facebook and other agencies dealing with vulnerable families. Our beneficiaries come from some of the most deprived communities in Tyne and Wear and Northumberland and include:
• Babies and Toddlers
• School age children – who receive school uniforms, PE kits, warm clothing, good shoes, books, gifts and special occasion wear
• Vulnerable families – our food boxes and other donations help to reduce their costs and keep them out of debt
• Older people who benefit from donations of warm clothing – helping to keep them warm and reducing their heating bills
• Our helpful staff provide a listening ear and a friendly voice to those suffering from social isolation, domestic violence and abuse
3. Clothe and Feed – Services we Provide
3.1 Nursery Service
We have the largest free baby equipment loan service in the North East. Our Nursery Department is packed with everything you need for babies including baby buggies, chairs, cots and prams, baby clothes toiletries, nappies and Baby Boxes complete with everything a new baby needs. Newcastle International Airport and Bay Food Bank are donate over 150 abandoned buggies and prams each year which we lend out to vulnerable families throughout the North East completely free of charge. We also provide all baby clothes, nappies, toiletries and baby boxes completely free of charge, helping vulnerable families and their babies throughout the North East to get a much improved start in life.
3.2 Community School Clothing Scheme
We have an incredibly large and well organised stock of good quality school uniforms and clothing in all sizes from over 100 schools throughout the North East. A great expense for many families throughout the North East particularly where there are several school age children, these uniforms are offered free of charge saving considerable expense. Not only do we offer free school uniforms we also offer:
- Coats and winter wear for all ages
- School footwear
- PE kits, after school club kits such as cubs, football and dance and gymnastics
All of these items are offered free of charge, ensuring that children from deprived communities are able to fully participate in school clubs and activities.
3.3 Winter Wear – Hope for a Coat
As the winter nights draw in and temperatures start to plummet we’re really proud to be able to collect and offer warm coats and clothing to our children, families and older people in need. This winter we plan to donate over 1000 coats.
3.4 Formal / Interview Wear Free Hire Service
We offer a great selection of men’s and women’s s suits and interview wear. If you are going to interviews or a special event there is no need to pay a fortune when sometimes the garment will only be used a few times. We also have a large selection of special occasion wear and accessories for events such as weddings, christenings and other special occasions including school prom dresses and clothing which are often so expensive and inaccessible to those on low incomes.
3.5 Emergency Food Donations
We work closely with our partners including food banks and supermarkets to arrange for emergency food donations to be made to our families most in need, particularly during school holidays and the current COVID19 crisis when budgets are stretched the most. Food and Sanitary Product parcels can be collected either from our shops, bases or delivered by our van direct to homes.
3.6 Children’s Books and Presents
We have a wide range of children’s books and a large stock of other presents which are free for all children and their parents / carers. At times like birthdays and Christmas, we ensure that no child misses out and that vulnerable families don’t feel pressured to get into debt buying presents – every little helps !
4. Clothe and Feed Achievements So Far
Great progress has already been made including:
- Over 4,500 people including families, young mothers, older people and other individuals from our most vulnerable communities have been helped and supported.
- Collection and distribution points have been set up in Sunderland, Cobalt Business Park Cramlington, Wallsend, Hebburn and Newcastle with plans to set up a new base in the West End of Newcastle and Gateshead during 2020. We've just received funding to enable us to greatly expand our Clothing Banks throughout North East England (over 50 extra banks planned for the coming months) which will massively increase our stock of clothing.
- Newcastle International Airport and Bay Foodbank have kindly agreed to donate abandoned baby buggies (around 150 each year) which are reused and lent out free of charge to deprived families throughout the North East.
- Our school uniform hubs give away thousands of items of school uniform and shoes from over 100 North East schools each year.
- Our Baby Bank re-uses and lends buggies, prams, cots and baby chairs free to vulnerable families. We also offer free nappies, baby clothing, toiletries and other baby boxes and equipment – essential to give babies the best start in life.
- Successful in our bid to be Marks and Spencer’s Silverlink Charity of the Year for 2019
- Partnerships built up with many public and private sector organisations and companies who provide volunteers, clothes collections and funding (ie Accenture, North P and I, Newcastle Airport, Marks and Spencers, Sir Peter Vardy, housing associations and local authorities).
- Distributing hundreds of gifts and presents for children – particularly important for Birthdays & Christmas
- Providing emergency food donations for vulnerable families working with our foodbank partners
- We’ve just received an incredibly generous donation of over 200 prom and special occasion dresses from Pink Boutique a local Gosforth business helping to save money for many of our vulnerable families and to make many girls and women’s dreams come true.
We’ve already made a great start with amazing feedback from our beneficiaries who really are taken aback and incredibly appreciative of the help and support we offer. But it’s not enough. We need your support to build our impact. With your help, we know we can do so much more - the demand for our services continues to grow. Help us by donating today !
5. Clothe and Feed - Community Need
Child Poverty is a particular concern in North East England where there are approximately 132,000 children living in poverty which equates to around 24% of all children. According to End Child Poverty UK, this rises to 1 in 3 children living in poverty in our most deprived areas with the North East having some of the highest levels of child poverty in the country.
Across the North East, 20% of children live in homes that are cold or damp or both. There is an increasing demand for school uniforms, warm coats and clothing and good shoes in our area. The cost of these items are prohibitively expensive for many young mums, families and individuals. Often children go without the necessities many of us take for granted. In the UK, over 350,000 tonnes (worth £140 million) of used but still wearable clothing go into landfill every year – we recycle and re-use at least some of these clothes, putting them to a much better use !
Our free clothing, warm jackets, school uniforms and emergency food donations make a massive difference to families living in poverty and in poor housing conditions. Several surveys have flagged up that countless children suffer the embarrassment of being sanctioned for not having the correct school uniform, including being sent home, sent to isolation and missing out on rewards. We help tackle this issue.
There is a massive need in the North East to help struggling mums and vulnerable children with baby equipment, clothing and toiletries. Our Baby Bank Appeal exists to fund expansion of the existing service by building up donation and collection points. The Baby Bank service is free to those accessing it. It already makes a huge difference, but there is so much more that can be done.
The Covid19 crisis is putting additional pressures on vulnerable families and individuals who face additional financial pressures, uncertainty about their jobs, social isolation and even increased levels of domestic abuse. We provide a listening ear and can provide help and advice to those suffering from abuse. Our food parcels, free school uniforms (which can cost up to £300) helps keep families and older people warm, to reduce their heating bills and help to keep them out of debt - a downward spiral that can result in them losing their home.
There has never been a better time to donate to our Clothe and Food Charity, and there has never been such need from our vulnerable families - £3000 will make an enormous difference. Please donate today to help us to help our most deprived children, families and older people at the time of their greatest need !
6. Our Beneficiaries
Our beneficiaries come from some of the most deprived communities in Tyne and Wear and Northumberland and include:
- Babies and Toddlers who receive a better start in life through our Nursery Service
- School age children – who receive school uniforms, PE kits, warm clothing, good shoes books, gifts and special occasion wear
- Vulnerable families – our food and sanitary parcels help to keep them clean and safe, reduce their costs and help to keep them out of debt
- Older people who benefit from the receipt of warm clothing – particularly important in winter to keep them warm and to reduce their heating bills
Many of our beneficiaries are referred to us by local authorities and housing associations, but we also promote our service through a website, Facebook and other agencies dealing with vulnerable families.
8. Benefits of Our Work
Our work provides the glue that helps and supports North East families at vulnerable times. We collect and recycle used clothing and school uniforms – reducing wastage and giving them a new lease of life.
- We give babies and children and from deprived families a much better start in life
- We enable thousands of children each year to access high quality school uniforms, footwear and other clothing
- We keep vulnerable people warm by donating free winter coats and warm clothing – helping to keep them healthy and reducing their heating bills
- Our help and support by a team of hardworking and talented staff and volunteers helps to prevent less well-off families getting into debt – a downward spiral that can result in considerable distress, rent arrears and even eviction
9. Love What We Do – Here’s How you Can Help
Our Clothe and Feed Charity, makes a massive difference to vulnerable children, families and individuals across the North East. We’ve already made a great start with amazing feedback from our beneficiaries who really are taken aback and incredibly appreciative of the help and support we offer.
But it’s not enough. We need your support to build our impact. And with your help, we know we can do so much more. Any donation towards our charity is very much welcomed:
- £5 enables us to deliver and donate a food parcel to a vulnerable family.
- £10 enables us to provide free PE kit to 2 children – they won’t miss out on lessons
- £20 enables us to collect and donate free books, and other safe presents to 5 children from vulnerable families – particularly important at Christmas and Birthdays
- £50 helps us to provide free suit and special occasion wear (for interviews, weddings and christenings) for 10 people
- £100 enables us to collect, recycle and donate 30 winter coats to vulnerable families and older people
- £250 helps us to collect and donate two free school uniforms for 30 children
- £500 enables us to donate buggies, clothes, toiletries and nappies for 50 babies through our Baby Bank – helping to give them the best start in life
- £1,000 meets our total running costs for one week
While there is great satisfaction in knowing that you’re helping babies, children, young families and other vulnerable people, we hope to see this as a mutually beneficial relationship. Check out our rewards and opportunities to visit us and to volunteer for our charity. Even the smallest contribution will be much appreciated, will help us to get further match funding and will make a massive difference. Please join me in supporting this great project which supports our vulnerable families at the time of their greatest need.