We always need:

• Bulk goods from Corporates; surplus, perhaps because of branding changes, or slight imperfections, or market changes
• Monetary donations – Trucking/Shipment/Aid purchase costs are high, but the end user aid delivery value is massively more; Typically, £10,000 of convoy costs, delivers £250,000 worth of aid!
• A funded Warehouse (to use or share, or to receive pallets and store for us)– immediate 80% Rates reduction for charity occupancy – Dry/secure/clean/Herts or Essex area
• Public donations of the right aid – This is what we need and when we need it, but remember, Would you give it to your child or your mum? If not, we and more importantly the receipients don't want it either!
  • If posting, or delivering, please check and pre-advise by email - Please email Charles Storer
  • If you are collecting aid as part of an aid group, and can deliver, please only use Banana boxes of the type as shown below, not the longer banana boxes, and MUST have lids that completely cover - already sorted by type (as per needs list) and boxed and labelled – we are just a few unpaid volunteers who give up our own time. If you want to help, please help us too, by carefully selecting and sorting only what is needed.
  • Labelling – Top and ALL four sides, large bold visible with felt pens or stuck on labels
• Monetary Transportation contributions – the people who we are all trying to help NEED your aid, but please remember that collection and costs of delivery to the other side of Europe is not cheap – if you can make a financial contribution with your aid, we will always be extremely grateful.
• GIFT Aid – This is so easy – If you pay tax, we can claim an extra £25 from the tax man for every £100 you donate – If you are donating online then the website will allow you to automatically add gift aid.  If you are sending a cheque or paying directly into our back account all you have to do is send us a completed Gift Aid Declaration or just tell us you are and that you’re happy for us to claim, and provide your name, house name or number, and Post code, and we’ll do the rest

We never want:

• House clearance unsuitable, worn out, …tut!
• Black sacks – “we hate these with a passion” – we have to sort and repack everything
• Open top boxes – cannot be stacked and we have to sort and repack everything
• Flimsy boxes – collapse when stacked and we have to sort and repack everything
• Fresh food or out of date ambient food or medical supplies – BUT PLEASE READ BELOW
  • We cannot accept liquids, or unused medicines
  • we can sometimes accept sealed and sterile bandages and similar up to a few months past date, but PLEASE, identify things that you can’t use and let us have them 6 months before they expire!
  • Ambient food can have a variety of date stamps – we are always keen to talk to donors about bulk food offers before it might be destined for landfill.

Where to send it?

If you would like to donate goods, please contact Charles Storer by email and state what you have, quantities, and how they are packaged.

 “Oh that we had a warehouse!” – but we don’t – we can receive pallets of aid at a farm where the owner generously allows us to store them

Collection points nationally? – We’re sorry, but we don’t have any because we are just ordinary members of the public – If you have sufficient quantity to warrant a truck collection, we may be able to do that ourselves, or we may suggest a commercial transport company who typically charge per pallet quantity (e.g. 30 banana boxes)

Thank you

We couldn’t help anyone, without your support – during the past 20 years since we started Hope and Aid Direct, you have donated over 2,000 tons of aid that we’ve saved from landfill, and funded the transportation and distribution of this aid to people in desperate need in Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia, Kosova, Montenegro, Romania, Greece, Syria, Philippines, Sri Lanka, France and here in the UK – Thank you so much!