Nearly everything we give away was given to us. If you have outgrown baby things in good condition, we would like them.
What we always need
- Nappies, sealed, any size — size 4 and above go fastest
- Baby wipes, sealed
- Clothes in 0–3 months and 18–24 months, which run short more often than the middle sizes
- Sleepsuits and vests
- Cot sheets and blankets
- Toiletries, sealed and in date
- Towels, including hooded baby towels
What we can usually use
- Clothes and shoes up to age two, clean and unstained
- Prams, pushchairs and slings, complete and in working order
- Travel cots, moses baskets and cot frames
- Highchairs, bouncers and playmats
- Breast pumps, steriliser units, bowls and weaning spoons
- Books and toys, complete and wipeable
- Maternity clothes
What we cannot take
These are safety rules rather than fussiness. Please do not be offended if we turn something away — it usually means we cannot vouch for it, not that there is anything wrong with it.
- Car seats. We cannot know whether a seat has been in a collision, and the damage that matters is often invisible. We only ever pass on new seats.
- Cot and moses basket mattresses. Safer sleep guidance is that each baby has their own new, firm, flat mattress. We buy these new.
- Bottles, teats and dummies. We cannot sterilise them to a standard we would be willing to stand behind.
- Opened nappies, wipes, toiletries or formula. Anything consumable has to arrive sealed and in date.
- Drop-side cots, and anything subject to a product recall.
- Anything damaged, incomplete or missing its instructions — particularly prams, cots and anything with a harness.
- Clothes that are stained, bobbled, torn or smell of smoke. Kindly meant, but we have to pay to dispose of them.
The condition test
Would you hand it to a friend who had just had a baby? If yes, we want it. If you would feel the need to apologise for it first, please do not.
Washed is enough. We check everything again before it goes out, so do not iron anything on our account.
Where to bring things
[COLLECTION POINT — ADDRESS]
[OPENING DAYS AND TIMES]
Please do not leave donations outside when we are closed. Cardboard and weather do not mix, and we end up throwing away things you meant well by.
Large items and big loads
Ask us first at chair@avonvalleybabybank.org.uk. Storage is our tightest constraint, and there are weeks when we genuinely cannot take another pram.