This weekend Oxfam is launching a nationwide drive to encourage residents to clear out their clutter, liberate their lofts and free themselves from stuff by donating to their local Oxfam shop.
There are two Oxfam shops In Chiswick, an
Oxfam bookstore on Turnham Green Terrace and an
Oxfam boutique at 190 Chiswick High Road.
A new study, commissioned by the charity, exposed the staggering amount of unneeded stuff the nation owns and revealed clothes are most likely to be cluttering up our homes, followed by CDs, books and toys, totalling 143 unused items stashed away in a typical household.
Liberating ourselves from unwanted clutter in our homes could free an entire room, for new uses.
● There are so many unworn or unused shoes in British households that put heel to toe in a line they'd stretch all the way round the world.
● Broken down, the average Brit currently owns 53 items of unworn clothing, 36 CDs and DVDs that are never played, and seven pairs of unwanted shoes.
● According to the study, the unused CDs and DVDs in each house would cover a floor space of 13.48 square metres, equivalent to a main bedroom in an average house.
● When it comes to our wardrobes, the research revealed there are 3.8 billion items of unworn clothing lying around, which could take up as much space as a guest bedroom.
We are cluttering up a mind-blowing amount of space and our homes are too small to deal with this.
[caption id="attachment_17374" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Oxfam Bookshop, Turnham Green Terrace"]
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Hoarders are doing so for sentimental reasons, 'just in case' they need the items again, or because they can't spare the time to try and sell it. Andrew Horton, Oxfam Trading Director: "Oxfam has 660 shops nationwide and they all desperately need good-quality donations of clothing, homewares like cutlery, crockery, linens, curtains and rugs, books and music and accessories including bags and jewellery."
"An average bag of donated stuff - like clothes, books, music, DVDs and homewares - can raise enough money to help two vulnerable families buy desperately needed food in an emergency. Or buy five buckets specially designed to keep water clean and disease-free."
When asked what they'd do with the liberated space, four in 10 respondents said they'd leave it empty and enjoy it. Redecorating and converting the space into a home office area was also a popular choice.
Your nearest
donation point.
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Hoarders are doing so for sentimental reasons, 'just in case' they need the items again, or because they can't spare the time to try and sell it. Andrew Horton, Oxfam Trading Director: "Oxfam has 660 shops nationwide and they all desperately need good-quality donations of clothing, homewares like cutlery, crockery, linens, curtains and rugs, books and music and accessories including bags and jewellery."
"An average bag of donated stuff - like clothes, books, music, DVDs and homewares - can raise enough money to help two vulnerable families buy desperately needed food in an emergency. Or buy five buckets specially designed to keep water clean and disease-free."
When asked what they'd do with the liberated space, four in 10 respondents said they'd leave it empty and enjoy it. Redecorating and converting the space into a home office area was also a popular choice.
Your nearest donation point.
