Donations Urgently needed - Hostel at the top of Barry road

[SebsC]

Hi all. Whenever I have clothing, toys etc that my little one has grown out of, I usually bring them to local charity shops, but with my latest bundle of baby clothes I wanted to bring them somewhere where it might be more desperately needed. I saw somewhere on the forum about the hostel/refuge in the church at the top of Barry Road, so i called in this afternoon to see if they wanted/needed baby things. The lady I spoke to (Nancy) couldn't have been any more appreciative! They are desperate for baby/children's things. The people in the hostel I think are mainly refugees who have suffered horrendous abuse. Recently two sets of twins have been born there so they are desperate for donations. In particular, the lady said they urgently needed buggies/prams/pushchairs - they recently had some given to them but the time they got to the bottom of the road, wheels had fallen off, seats had ripped etc so they need ones that are in a decent condition. I appreciate that this is difficult to acquire as most people tend to sell their unwanted pushchairs but if anyone has ones they no longer need this hostel would massively appreciate it. I have Nancy's number should anyone want to speak to her which I can give you if you PM me.

[bumpy]

Hi, can you send me the details. Don't have push chairs but lots of other bits and pieces they may want

/ need. Thanks

[Jessie]

I have a lot of boys clothes and shoes I'd like to give them and a fair few toys me wee one has got too old for, not to mention books galore, so if you could send me the contact details that would be much appreciated.

[puzzle007]

I suggest other charities such as the homeless the refugees in Barry road are all well dressed and I'm talking about 120 00 trainers on their feet new items are always being delivered .

[canela]

I don't know the place very well, but I very much doubt they are wearing ?120 trainers?!? Just because people are not in rags does not mean they are not in need.

[esme]

What a great cause, will see what I have!

[Pickle]

I am just back from a rehearsal in the church next to the hostel, and walk down the side of the hostel building to get in. There are families squeezed into single rooms with bunk beds, it's not a nice situation for any family to be in, and I doubt they would choose to be there if they weren't genuinely in need.

[srisky]

puzzle007 Wrote:

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> I suggest other charities such as the homeless the

> refugees in Barry road are all well dressed and

> I'm talking about 120 00 trainers on their feet

> new items are always being delivered .

What they wear depends on what is donated - if someone donated ?120 shoes then so be it.

[SebsC]

Thank you to all the people who have replied and/or PM'd me looking to donate things, I'm sure the hostel will be most grateful. As for the comment about ?120 shoes - everyone is entitled to their opinion but I can certainly verify after my time spent in the hostel yesterday bringing through my donated baby clothes, the people I saw, predominantly women and children, were certainly not wearing anything that looked expensive or designer - unless you class flip flops as expensive! There were whole families cramped into very small, very bare looking rooms so I for one have no qualms about donating my unwanted possessions to them. Furthermore, I do not feel it is my place to pass judgement on a whole hostel based on one or two individuals. But, like I said, we are all entitled to have differing opinions.

[Otta]

puzzle007 Wrote:

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> I suggest other charities such as the homeless the

> refugees in Barry road are all well dressed and

> I'm talking about 120 00 trainers on their feet

> new items are always being delivered .

Daily Mail Reader Alert!

[Otta]

We havean old buggy we could give. It's old, but in good condition and very sturdy. I'll get it out the cupboard and give it a clean over the weekend.

We probably have some girls clothes and toys too, but unfortunately took a big bag of stuff to the charity shop last week.

[James Barber]

My understanding is that the hostel occupants are people claiming asylum after arriving at Gatwick airport.

Odd place to have a hostel supporting Gatwick Airport but the Home Office several years ago was clear it was the only option.

Chuffed, but not surprised, to see such generosity from East Dulwich residents. I'll have a root around our attic.

[Otta]

James I imagine every local authority will be asked to take a quota of people arriving.

Once you get your base authoeiry, they may well house you out of borough, but they are financially responsible for you.

It gets complicated when it comes to local services and whether the cost should be picked up by the base of host borough.

[SebsC]

Otta Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> We havean old buggy we could give. It's old, but

> in good condition and very sturdy. I'll get it out

> the cupboard and give it a clean over the

> weekend.

>

> We probably have some girls clothes and toys too,

> but unfortunately took a big bag of stuff to the

> charity shop last week.

That would be great Otta. I went again today to donate some old baby toys and saw the cupboard where they keep the toys and it was very bare so I think anything would be appreciated, especially the pushchair. The lady who I spoke with, Nancy, I think leads a nurse clinic there for children but as she's in clinic a lot of the time she's not always able to answer her phone so on both occasions I just turned up in the afternoon and asked for her and she was able to come and get the donations from me. Thanks!

[balvaird]

Hello, I am about to to a big charity shop donation of baby things, could you send me Nancy's number and I will see what she needs? Thanks Simone

[Cora]

Took some stuff today and haven't ever had a donation so gratefully received.....some of my stuff included excess soap, creams, shampoos etc which were wasting away in the bathroom, so don't forget to have a clear out there too!

Nancy gave me an updated number as the other one isn't getting a great reception inside the building:

07920 807521

So this is the one to use from now on.......

[SebsC]

Cora Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Took some stuff today and haven't ever had a

> donation so gratefully received.....some of my

> stuff included excess soap, creams, shampoos etc

> which were wasting away in the bathroom, so don't

> forget to have a clear out there too!

>

> Nancy gave me an updated number as the other one

> isn't getting a great reception inside the

> building:

>

> 07920 807521

>

> So this is the one to use from now on.......

Thanks for that Cora! Nancy is really so appreciative of donations which is why I wanted to highlight the issue as I felt my few bags of donations were just scratching the surface of what is needed there! Hopefully, all the generous members of our community will continue to delight Nancy and the residents of the hostel.

[SebsC]

I brought some more things in today and spoke with Nancy. She said she has been amazed by the response from the community. She said today her phone has been ringing non stop with people wanting to donate things. In particular, she mentioned someone had donated a double buggy with room for older children to stand at the back (presumably buggy boards?) and they gave it to a mother of two young children who is pregnant with her third - apparently she burst into tears and was so overwhelmed with the generosity of people she couldn't stop crying. All the donated goods are massively appreciated and desperately needed so well done everyone. Nancy also mentioned women's clothing was much needed so anyone thinking of having a sort out of their old clothes please bring them to this hostel. Many thanks.

[Pickle]

That's so nice to hear. I have a pile of clothes (some maternity) that I'll take up along with kids stuff once I've had a sort out. Well done EDF!

[verds]

Aw, that's lovely. I have bags of stuff ready for them - anyone know if you can just drop it in, or whether you need to let them know beforehand?

[SebsC]

Hi Verds. That would be great - each time I went I just turned up. Afternoon seems to be a good time to go as nancy is in clinic then.

Best wishes.

[Gimme]

Well done for highlighting the hostel in Barry Road and their request for baby things.

We took some clothes, toys and a pram up today and as experienced by many posters above, the staff there were so gracious and grateful. There is obviously a real need and the people there have very little compared to many of us.

So if you do have some good condition baby things they would undoubtedly be really appreciated.

[EDAus]

I donated some things today (books, toys and baby clothes) and the staff were very grateful.

I asked if they needed anything in particular at the moment just in case we had something that they could use lying around the house. They mentioned that they could really use donations of good quality suitcases/bags, cutlery, china, sauce pans and bed linen. Things that would help people set up a home once they are ready to leave the hostel.

Just a reminder the hostel is at the top of Barry Road, there is a drive that you can drive straight into and people there to help you unload anything you can donate.

[loveapples]

Great work everyone!

[bumpy]

Hi, dropped some things off this afternoon and Nancy asked if the gentleman who dropped off the suits earlier today could get in touch as they found a memory card in one of the pockets. Thanks