Today, Cabinet Office employees got behind the Donate Don’t Dump campaign to raise money for Age Concern and Help the Aged by donating items of clothing and accessories.

The Cabinet Office atrium was transformed into an Age Concern and Help the Aged charity shop for the event. Members of staff donated over 900 items of high quality unwanted clothes and goods to the event. Donations included a tie from the Prime Minister Gordon Brown, a dress from Sarah Brown, a suit from Head of the Civil Service Gus O’Donnell and a coat from Minister for the Third Sector Angela Smith.

The Donate Don’t Dump Campaign, which was set up by the Association of Charity Shops, featured in the BBC programme Mary Portas Queen of Charity Shops. The campaign aims to improve the quality and quantity of donations to charity shops and to encourage more people to give. Especially as donations are vital income sources for many charities.

Staff brought in clothing worth five pounds or over that they no longer wear and donated them at the event. The donations were collected by Hugh Forde Managing Director of Retail, Trading & Training of Age Concern and Help the Aged.

Whilst speaking at the Cabinet Office event, Mary Portas, Queen of Charity Shops, said:

“You get the Civil Service behind your campaign and Minister for the Third Sector and it takes it to another level. This is just what we need.”

Minister for the Third Sector, Angela Smith said:

“I am delighted to have this opportunity to support the third sector and in particular Age Concern and Help the Aged. I’m really pleased to see that so many Cabinet Office employees have joined me in supporting this important cause. By joining Mary Portas’s campaign to raise the quality of donations to charity shops we can all make a real difference.

“It is currently more important than ever to donate as many charity shops have suffered from a drop in donations during the recent difficult economic times.”

Hugh Forde, Managing Director of Retail, Trading & Training at Age Concern and Help the Aged said:

“It is vital the charity receives high quality donations so that we can continue to make a real difference to the lives of older people. Therefore, I would like to thank the staff at the cabinet office for selecting Age Concern and Help the Aged as their chosen charity for the Donate Don’t Dump event and for their generous donations.”

The Cabinet Office are committed to supporting the third sector and also leads the way in volunteering by pledging earlier in the year to allow all staff up to five days off a year to volunteer.

Volunteering brings significant benefits both to the employer and the employee. It builds the employee’s skills, gives wider perspectives and helps support stronger communities. For the employer, it brings new skills and ideas to the workforce and is clear way of showing the support the organisation is giving to the local communities in which it works.