[Contributed by ‘Torbay 3 Towns’]
Torbay’s School Uniform Bank launched yesterday; the first of its kind in the South West.
Run by Katie Williams and Emily Heather from Torbay 3 Towns (not-for-profit) community group, the school uniform bank aims to help those families in the bay who are most in need.
Uniforms are a necessary and essential part of a child’s experience at school, however can be expensive to purchase at the start of each year, with some low-income families struggling to finance these. The uniform bank receives quality, used uniform donations from families with children who have grown out of theirs. They then donate these to children in need of items through a referral system set up with schools across the bay. This ensures that the items donated reach those who most need them.
The school uniform bank has donation points in each town, Torquay, Paignton and Brixham, to make it easier for people to donate items they no longer need. The bank is seeking to receive uniforms from all primary and secondary schools across the bay. After prioritising referrals, the school uniform bank will then invite others who might need help sourcing school uniform items to come along and either swap items they have with sizes they need, or donate a small amount (no more than £1-£2) in order to collect items they need for their children.
100% of each donation will fund Torbay 3 Towns’ community projects for the direct benefit of the people of Torbay. The Torbay 3 Towns points of contact for donations, referrals and any further information is: Torbay3Towns@outlook.com Alternatively, donations can be arranged through Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/TorbaySchoolUniformBank
