To ask charity shop workers what you DO and DON'T want donated

[DimityandDeNimes]

Obviously you don't want anything dirty or broken.

I'm having a massive clear out and am struggling to decide what to donate or recycle or bin.

Are you overwhelmed by stuff at the moment? My friend dropped a few bags at a huge charity shop and said their faces dropped at the sight of more stuff!

I work in a charity shop. All shops will have different rules on what they want/need. But please could you make sure that any clothing/bedding etc you donate is clean. The amount of stuff we receive that is filthy is astonishing. Including food stains. Obviously we can’t sell dirty clothes - and it’s no good telling us that it’s actually a lovely cashmere jumper under the dirt/food stains, we still can’t sell it

timeforanew You donated items to a store which didn't sell them then expected them to take them across the road for you? Stores are incredibly busy right now so don't have the time or space to keep items which they can't sell. We're currently doing pre-Christmas level of sales with probably double/triple the level of usual donations and half the volunteers. We usually do have a van to take stock between stores but that's off just now due to various reasons.

I could never donate food that's 2 months past it's best before to a food Bank. If it's not good enough to give guests in my house, it's not good enough for the food bank imo.

You must have higher standards than I do, then! A tin of beans or soup that has a BBE date 24 months into the future when you buy it new is not going to be noticeably different if you eat it after 26 months.

I volunteered in a small charity shop for a while and good quality donations like the lego you mentioned, would have been put to one side to put on ebay. Its probably not a member of staff, its just the best way to make the most money. Once we had absolutely loads of pale pink le creuset things in, most were unused. They raised a huge amount for the charity on ebay, but might not have raised much in store. If things were listed as buy it now, they’d also be offered for sale in the shop at the same time.

Charity shops have huge overheads and the staff work very hard.

I don't doubt you in the least or disagree with your reasoning, but I'm amazed that buyers in a charity shop wouldn't have the nous to see a Christmas tree or decorations in January, grab themselves an advance bargain and stick it in their loft for the rest of the year.

We've tried, nobody wants them. Our (new) cards and wrapping are reduced to a fraction of the full price and people still don't want them.

We are inundated with charity bags through the letterbox so tend to fill them and leave outside. They state what they accept so it's easily sorted. Have had prompt collection of stuff from British Heart Foundation a couple of times when I've phoned asking if they were due a round soon. Ours takes furniture as well if in good condition and with safety labels attached.

I ask the shops what they want. Actually one is very good and will tell you before you take it in, ie: certain books because their shelf is broken and awaiting repair, no cuddly toys due to Covid and no furniture due to space due to distancing. If I am not sure I ask and take it next time.

Cuddly toys can go to charities that collect them for children that have nothing, refugees. There are a few of them, they wash and distribute them to children that don't have a teddy. Charity shops always seem overwhelmed with them.

Or Freecycle.

I volunteer at a charity shop. It's best to call ahead and ask if you need to book in to drop the items off, that way they can prepare for the amount of stock coming in each day as they generally quarantine stock for a while before sorting through it.

Clean items are a must.
Old towels can often be donated to animal shelters (again, call ahead to see if they need them/book in a drop off slot).
Manky saucepans or rusty bathroom stuff is a no go.

Olio is a great app for giving away unwanted items and food too. Give it a try!

Our estate has a WhatsApp group and stuff is put on there daily and people pick it up. Great for recycling. I feel awful chucking stuff. Also local Facebook groups that match you with someone who needs your stuff.

Call and ask your local shop. Its usually a matter of space especially now rather than not wanting it
E.g. I know Oxfam send nothing to landfill- it sells in the shop, online, or goes to the equivalent of the large scale ragman.

Anything electrical or large I freecycle

I read the threads on MN during the height of lockdown about people decluttering and giving to charity so, fairly soon after the shops were open again, I went to have a look. Where is all this amazing, so-much-that-we-don't-know-what-to-do-with-it stuff? It's not in our local shops, that's for sure.

I'd recommend 'we buy books' for all books that are in good clean condition, I think they accept dvds as well. Free pick ups as well. You won't get an awful lot for them but better than putting them into landfill, at least they will be sold on for others to reuse.

The one I'm volunteering at is asking for lightly worn clothes ideally branded (not Asda) but we will put out superman stuff if it's in nearly new condition. Bulk ideas like baby gros are put in a 50p bin but it's usually overflowing because most people don't buy them second hand because they are so cheap. We don't take underwear (there's specialist charities though that send overseas). We do officially take men's clothing but often it gets sent to home less shelters because men simply don't ever come in to buy clothes, they sit there for 4 weeks then get sent to the Salvation Army

Paperbacks can go in paper recycling.... can they not? 🤔

You must have higher standards than I do, then! A tin of beans or soup that has a BBE date 24 months into the future when you buy it new is not going to be noticeably different if you eat it after 26 months.

I would eat it myself. I wouldn't give it away because people who have to use food banks shouldn't be expected to be grateful for food that's past it's best before. Don't you think it's hard enough for some people to use a foodbank without having to accept stuff that someones cleared out of the back of their cupboard out of date as though the foodbank is one step up from the bin?

@Heffalooomia, apparently not because of the glue.

Forgot to say the GET charity shops will take magazines, and I think, DVDs

I would eat it myself. I wouldn't give it away because people who have to use food banks shouldn't be expected to be grateful for food that's past it's best before. Don't you think it's hard enough for some people to use a foodbank without having to accept stuff that someones cleared out of the back of their cupboard out of date as though the foodbank is one step up from the bin?

I'm not wanting to hijack and rehash the recent thread specifically about this relating to foodbanks, but I don't think it's a question of gratitude - it's simply a need that's being met (that never should exist in the first place if governments actually did their job).

Do you expect people to be grateful for you giving them stuff (via a foodbank) that is in date? I'm a non-taxpayer and cost the NHS a lot of money - I'm very glad that we have the system, but I don't go around tugging my forelock to every healthy higher-rate taxpayer that I meet.

I'm just thinking from a practical point of view: if somebody has a tin of good food that shows an arbitrary BBE date of a day/week/month previous and doesn't want it or can't use it for any reason, is it better for society if that tin goes in the bin or goes to somebody who could make very good use of it?

Couple of other things which spring to mind which we can't sell:

Fakes - counterfeit anything, irrespective of the actual quality of the item. We see a LOT of fake "chanel" or "gucci" plastic handbags and they have to go straight in the bin. Also fake scarves, shoes, Ugg boots (95% of the pairs we see are fake), clothing. It's illegal to sell fakes.

DVDS / CDs - those wee freebie CDs and DVDs they give away in the paper or whatever can't be sold. We can't really recycle them either.

Safety equipment - someone mentioned car seats and those are a definite no-no. We also can't sell riding hats and cycle helmets as we just can't guarantee they are safe and they are donated often. Same goes for life jackets, floatation aids, stair gates, anything of that sort of thing. We don't sell things like high-chairs or cots either.

*oakleaffy Tue 22-Sep-20 11:30:11

That is just insanity! Lego {the real deal, branded} always has a value as so well engineered.
An antiques dealer I know always goes to a local Salvation Army shop and picks up 1960's ceramics that he sells for a hell of a lot more...

It seems that charity shops let good items slip through that could earn them a lot more money.
A Beswick china horse in a rare colour way raised £4,000 for a charity shop ..Ebay Auction..but the ''common'' colour way would have been about £15.

I think it was a steel grey Shire mare.*

I always feel twitchy about this - at our local rubbish tip there's a local hospice shop. I was there once when a man in a van turned up and bought nearly their entire stock. I can guarantee it was down the nearest boot sale the next weekend, to be made a profit from. Part of me thinks, at least the charity is getting their money, but it does feel wrong for someone to be profiting from charity items...

I once took a massive box of books to our local hospice drop off point. The guy working there asked what I had and when I said books, sighed and rolled his eyes at me... then he opened the box and his eyes lit up and said, excitedly, "these are all in pristine condition!" - so it seems crappy, spine creased, dog eared books are not as desirable!

Sorry - quote/bold fail...

Books I send to Abebooks or music magpie. Even if they're 10p a book I get a few quid, free shipping and a new home for the books that isn't the bin.

Clothes go in clothes recycling bins.

Furniture on Gumtree for a week or two and then the home clearence store nearby.

Everything else sadly to the bin.

I'm amazed that buyers in a charity shop wouldn't have the nous to see a Christmas tree or decorations in January, grab themselves an advance bargain and stick it in their loft for the rest of the year.

I think because shops like Wilko sell off their unsold Christmas stock in January dirt cheap (like items for 5p cheap), so people wouldn’t want used Christmas items when they can get the same items just as cheaply brand new.

I always feel twitchy about this - at our local rubbish tip there's a local hospice shop. I was there once when a man in a van turned up and bought nearly their entire stock. I can guarantee it was down the nearest boot sale the next weekend, to be made a profit from. Part of me thinks, at least the charity is getting their money, but it does feel wrong for someone to be profiting from charity items...

The charity wouldn’t get any more money if someone else buys them. They haven’t got the time to value anything, so they set a price they’re prepared to accept. He makes his profit by putting in the time they can’t.