20 years of gifting wellbeing essentials

As we continue to celebrate 20 years of Giving World, we've been reflecting on our journey to now.

After launching in 2001, we've celebrated some incredible milestones, like our first container of humanitarian aid going overseas in 2003, refurbishing computers for kids on deprived estates in 2005, and then launching the website as an effective distribution platform for people in need from 2008.

In all of those 20 years we have never had a year like last year though. Covid drove up demand for life essentials like never before and just as demand for food banks grew, so did demand for our services.

Most of the demand came from children and families, which increased exponentially as newly hungry families were thrown into disadvantage for the very first time as job losses, no recourse to public funds or the long 5 week wait for benefits severely impacted families.

There were many others impacted too, again often being referred for the very first time for our services: young parents, families with special needs children, and then the widely reported big increase in women fleeing domestic abuse.

The list goes on. And on.

We have responded by providing:

• Hygiene packs and emergency clothing packs for women and children fleeing abuse.
• Family well being bundles and craft items for children
• Bedding and crockery for the homeless to be housed during the pandemic
• We created 'bags of joy' and 'bags of blessings' to send to the many thousands of people up and down the country, shielding, alone and living in deprivation.

From John O'Groats to Land's End last year we reached 619,539 people, providing a whopping 1,408,622 essential life items, saving 7,778 tonnes of landfill CO2 emissions.

2020 was an extraordinary year, and this our anniversary year, doesn't see us slowing down.

We need your donations now more than ever. If you have goods or know of any organisations that do, please make contact with bindu@givingworld.org.uk