Hope Centre charity shop issues plea for help in Northampton as elderly volunteers shield in lockdown

The Hope Centre's charity shop in Abington Street can only open for two days a week at the moment as its elderly volunteers are now shielding.

Shop manager, Anna Austin, said Hope is in desperate need to take on extra volunteers to get the shop back open to six days to fund the Hope Centre's day centre in Campbell Street.

Since opening the shop it's helped to feed more of the homeless community Christmas Day.

Aside from offering hot meals it's also open for people in precarious housing situations to get housing advice, as well as employment and substance misuse support.

"We can only open for a couple of days a week at the moment because of the lack of volunteers as some of them are elderly," Anna said.

"If we can get some more people on board then we can open a bit more - as previously one of the days was run just by volunteers."

The shop - which opened for the first time in four months on Friday - needs additional help to put an influx of donations on the shop floor at the old Co-op bank unit.

Two rooms at the shop have been specifically set aside for donations, which are being put in quarantine for seven days and steam cleaned before they are sold to the public.

The charity shop, which opened in March 2019, is also a way of giving their service users, who are interested in retail, a chance to get some vital work experience, and they will be working in the shop.

If you want to offer your services as a volunteer, call 0845 519 9371 or email fundraising manager Louise directly at [email protected].