Buy, don't donate, plea from charity shops

Had a good old clearout while you were stuck at home on lockdown?

Many of us have spent at least some of the last few weeks going through wardrobes, cupboards and drawers and turfing out items that we no longer need: clothes, shoes, handbags, books, DVDs, china and glass among them.

Many of us have done it with the aim of taking the items to our local charity shops, but as a result many of them have been inundated with items and have no room to take any more.

Both the Samaritans charity shop in the High Street and the Barnardo's shop in Bridge Street have had to ask customers to hold off with the donations for the time being.

The Samaritans shop, which is open to sell goods, has been gratefully taking donations since reopening its doors in the third week of June, but its stock warehouse is now full.

The manager told [+B]Nub News[.B]: "It's not that we don't want it, but we have to stop taking donations for the time being to give us time to go through what we've got.

"We can start taking it again from next week" (July 13th onwards).

"But we are open and we've got some lovely stuff!"

The Barnardo's shop in Bridge Street will reopen on July 15th, but is unable to take any donations before that time.