Clothes Banks ?

I get annoyed at the plastic bags for collections that come, but they never come back to collect them!

We have all sorts of recycling containers.

The Salvation Army are good, or if not, Freecycle works.

I used to take clothes to a social services collection point and they only gave them out to people in need via DHSS but this place closed down in my area, maybe worth a call to them to see if anything similar exists in your local area.

In my area we have large pods not unlike bottle banks where clothes can be deposited and I think they are managed appropriately distributed by the Salvation Army. Come to think of it, they might be a good body to approach for help with this.

I get good use out of those charity collections from my house. They come at incredibly early hours of morning. I leave items on my porch the night before with the coloured plastic bag cover stuck up high in window so visible over the car. Sometimes I add a cardboard box with more fragile items. It is inevitable that some items might not make it to the shelves of the charity shop. There is a huge percentage of clothing that is deemed unsuitable for resale for example.
But there is an industry in dealing with old material so not 'dumped'. I have been 'stung' by a dealer taking a lot of stuff from me via freecycle website... I answered a bogus plea for items for a person who had lost all in a fire. Same person had been to my house before so I sussed her out. But you can get to choose between contacts and pick a more likely person, a few clues in the email/message!

In the end 'stuff' is moved out of your life and space created for more to come in or to enjoy!

We have two local banks ...large containers in car parks ...BUT they are full and no more can be taken ....people are blaming this on lockdown when wardrobes were being sorted for the first time in a long time and now there are surplus clothes no one can take ...although the demand is still there....one bank is for the Salvation Army and another for a charity shop .....I have some waiting to go ........

If you've got a local NextDoor online link in your area, you could mention the clothes on there. Someone will be happy to take them, I'm sure, especially if bundled age-appropriately or in sizes.

You can advertise on Gumtree for free. I often advertise under “freebies” and have met lots of really nice people.
I have also picked up some great stuff for example a huge cold frame and another time bags and bags of perlite ( to add to compost).

The church in our next village takes school uniforms and clothes from our area you could try your local churches

Gumtree or Freecycle work well here if you can cope with the messing around that sometimes happens over collection. I just leave things in our porch. I have found the Salvation Army here welcome donations to be dropped at their Church office if the charity shop is closed. They will take just about anything that is fabric including towels and bedding. Also very keen to accept strong footwear. Otherwise most supermarkets seem to have a clothes bank of some sort as does our council recycling centre.

In The Salvation Army, we are always grateful for donations of clothes etc at our charity shops

OP, have you asked the Salvation Army or other church run charities?

In Denmark they hand out clothing to those who need them in Germany the Knights of St John of Malta do so and run soup kitchens. Caritas provides clothing too.

A local soup kitchen or homeless shelter may not have the capacity to hand out or store clothing, but they ought to know who does.

A lot of good suggestions here.I will read through again and see which is viable for me. We don't have a Salvation Army shop but we can put them in the clothes bank at Tesco's. I will sort the clothes into sizes and have another go at Freecyle as at least they would be collected , but unless things have changed, I don't expect many takers in this area.

This might help traid.org.uk/clothes-reuse-and-recycling/

Not a clothes bank exactly but our local Tesco are collecting coats for homeless people's charities.
I am not a Tesco shopper but one of my neighbours is collecting any unwanted coats from people in our road to take down there.
Might be worth seeing if your local Tesco is doing the same if you have any old coats you no longer need. I was surprised at how many old coats I had that have not been worn for a couple of years or more.

Before the first lockdown I volunteered with the Salvation Army giving out clothes to the homeless. Although the soup kitchen re-opened after the first lockdown, the clothes distribution still isn't happening in our town. I often collected clothing and bedding that was offered on freegle and passed it on to the SA but I've had to turn down offers during lockdown as I have limited space to store it at home. It's a shame as there are needy homeless people out there and I don't know how they manage without the fresh supplies of clean underwear etc. Unfortunately some of our client were very choosy about what they asked us for and I think many of them were selling on the best things that we gave out. We had to give them the benefit of the doubt unless we had definite evidence. If I collect anything from freegle I always make it clear if it is for me or for the homeless.

My town has a Salvation Army clothing bank sited at the local school. I also use the Olio App, Freecycle or FaceBook Marketplace to offer unwanted items for free and they are always snapped up.

Well a clothes bank certainly exists in Tonbridge. The clothes bank and food bank are both based in Tonbridge Baptist Church. They do an amazing job. Just really sad that in a wealthy country such as ours that they are necessary.

Greenfinch the one in Tonbridge is run exactly along the lines that you describe.

Many churches offer Winter night Shelter for the homeless, they are always most grateful for different clothes. Organisations which help abused women or men who have had to flee their family home for a safe place. We have nextdoor neighbour app, where people share...good and bad, or lonely.

Do you have to get rid of them now? Couldn't you wait till the charity shops are open again? It is a shame to throw away good clothes, not just because they might help the poor, but also because if someone can get some use out of them then they don't need to buy new clothes that use up precious resources, so its win win. I often buy clothes from charity shops and have found some good bargains there that have lasted for years.

Jayt you would be surprised at the amount of monied people why buy secondhand children’s clothes ...

Hello. Just wanted to say that here in Nottingham we have an actual clothes bank called Sharewear. It was set up in 2014 and helps individuals, the charity Framework which works with homeless and vulnerable people, the local hospitals and more. I think it is absolutely brilliant and should be copied throughout the country. Charity shops are great places but the poorest people often can't even afford their prices so a place where they can obtain clothing for free is needed. I support charity shops with other donations but clothes will go to Sharewear.

Let’s keep sniping political comments off Gransnet please!