A charitable band of Oxshott school children took action this Winter to help the capital’s homeless wrap up against the winter cold when they organised a Winter coat collection with the purpose of giving back to the wider community.
Our Editor, Holly Candlish was on hand to see the kids at work.
Concerned that coats and warm clothing were being thrown away or used for landfill, children from local school, Danes Hill, decided they could make better use of these unwanted items. At a meeting of their in-house school council, schoolboy Leo Friend suggested, ‘we could give them to people who don’t have warm houses or coats,’ and with a little prompting from parents and teachers, the Year 1 students uncovered the good work of Wrap Up London.
Last November saw the ninth year of ‘Wrap Up London’, the annual coat collection created by registered charity Hands On London back in 2011. This year, so many volunteers have felt inspired and empowered by the campaign that there are fifteen official ‘Wrap Ups’ across Britain, and collection points springing up all across the country including our Surrey villages. Collections happen at tube and rail stations, places of worship, places of work and local schools – just like the collection at Oxshott’s Danes Hill. The coats are then redistributed to local community groups which give direct support to the homeless, refugees, children in poverty, the elderly, and people fleeing domestic violence (to name a few).
The Headmistress, Mrs Ruth Samson, was impressed by how the children came together to organise the event themselves: ‘We collected coats for men, women and children and also all-in-one suits for babies too. I was very proud of how well the children worked on the morning. Each parent who donated a coat was welcomed at the door and shown where to go. Some of the coat piles were so big that we couldn’t see the children on the other side of the tables. In total the children collected over 300 coats.’
Hands On London CEO Jon Meech says: ‘Every year, it is a truly humbling experience to see hundreds of people coming together to help those most vulnerable in their community. Last year, over 1,200 people came together and collected almost 27,000 warm coats. Wrap Up is about the volunteers. Without you, none of this would happen. Tens of thousands of people will be a little warmer this winter, not just physically, but knowing someone cares.’
The work of one local school shows that there are people – and young children – who care about others. Mrs Samson reflects, ‘This was one of the most successful charity events that we have participated in and certainly brought the true meaning of Christmas to our school this year.’
If you, or your school, are interested in participating next year, please visit www.wrapuplondon.org.uk
