Toddlers clothes bank launched with Redbridge Council

Redbridge Council have launched a new clothes bank at one of our children’s centres in Ilford, giving families access to free clothes and shoes for toddlers.

Published: 09/07/2021

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Led by the Children’s Centre Manager Shopna Hussain and her team from Thackeray Drive and our Children’s Centres, the clothes bank will ensure vulnerable families in Redbridge will have essential items.

The clothes bank forms a part of Redbridge Council’s child poverty strategy aimed at supporting vulnerable families with a range of services relating to food poverty including cooking skills classes, benefits advice and information about Healthy Starts and foodbanks.

Sharon Barbour, Peabody’s Community Development Manager said:
“I am proud of all the work that Peabody’s Children’s Centres continue to do within Redbridge. The toddlers clothes bank will be a vital resource for families in the borough who have been hard hit during the pandemic.

“I have worked at Peabody for 27 years and in fact, my first role was based at the estate as a part-time outreach worker where I worked for five years before moving onto another role within the organisation. I have continued to be involved with the work at the centre and I am pleased that it supports vulnerable families in Redbridge during their time of need.”

Councillor Elaine Norman, Cabinet Cember for Children and Young People, added:
“Most of us have experienced difficulties during the pandemic but COVID-19 has hit many of our families particularly hard and so I’m delighted that we now have this clothes bank and other support available.

"To those of you who contribute and support and assist – I want to thank you for your generosity and determination to help others. In Redbridge we rely you all stepping up to help others – we’ve relied on you for this and I know we can continue to rely on you for the future because we share one common aim – to make sure that no child in our borough goes without food or clothes and that wherever we can we will do everything in our power to help families in whatever ways and at whatever times they need our help.”

The Toddlers Clothes Bank was launched on Wednesday 23 June at our Children’s Centre on Jaffe Road in Ilford and is currently open for donations and volunteers.