Islington Mill

Islington Mill freelance artist, Natalie, is collecting long-life food and gifts for an Eccles secondary school.

Suggestions for donations include toiletries, makeup, sweets, books, craft supplies, games and new clothing.

Natalie said: “Families are struggling over winter, especially in the inner-city areas. Lots of redundancies have been made and people find Christmas difficult enough, never mind with everything that’s just happened. I think families that are vulnerable are going to be even more so.

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“Kids and their families in this area will be having a pretty hard time and directly affected by Coronavirus. I wanted to help out and reach out to my community and see if we can do anything to make it a little bit easier.

“Lots of families at the minute have been experiencing domestic violence or poverty so by just giving a few gifts, they can have a better Christmas.

Permission to use from Jess Coulson (Project Coordinator at Islington Mill)

“I think this year especially, people are starting to realise what they have and what others might not or be struggling to get. It’s a good time for people to be able to donate for the first time and buy one or two more presents for someone who’s struggling while shopping for their families.”

She has chosen to keep herself and the school anonymous.

Islington Mill is aiming to support the collection as the organisation has recently been involved with Salford LCEP in supporting schools.

Jess Coulson, project co-ordinator at Islington Mill, said:

“Because of Covid 19, the situation for vulnerable children is a lot worse than usual so that’s why we’re asking for food as well as gifts”

“We had a decision among staff to signal boost and put the word out in our networks to push what she was doing. It’s part of us actively looking for more opportunities to work in a community and support it.

Permission to use from Jess Coulson (Project Coordinator at Islington Mill)

“Salford is changing quite rapidly and it’s not always great for the people in the local community. We’ve been there for over 20 years so we’ve seen a lot of the change around us.

“Although this isn’t art-based, it feels like such a fundamental need and we’re fortunate enough to have a large platform so we can offer assistance.”

Collections are open from Wednesday 25 to Friday 27 this month. If you have any donations to offer, drop them off at Islington Mill at the address below. Islington Mill asks that if you do donate, wear a face mask and sanitise your hands on arrival.

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