Donate to our shops

If you have things you no longer use or want sitting around at home, don't just throw them away! By donating an unwanted item to your local Age UK shop, we can recycle it to generate vital funds to improve the lives of people in later life.

We can recycle clothes, mobile phones, computers, foreign currency, toner and inkjet cartridges. Read on to find out how:

Maximise your donation through Gift Aid

Find your nearest Age UK shop

Clothes

It doesn’t matter if the clothes you're planning to donate to us are damaged or past their best; even ripped clothes can be recycled as rags.

Ways to donate clothes to Age UK:

1. Drop off items at your local shop during working hours. Please do not leave them outside if the shop is shut.
2. From time to time our stock collectors will post an Age UK donation bag through your door. Fill it in, put your unwanted clothes in it, and leave it outside your home on the collection day.
3. If you have several bags and can't drop them off yourself, contact your local shop to arrange a collection. The more you have, the more economical it will be for us. Maybe your family, friends and neighbours have things we can collect at the same time?

Mobile phones

Just drop off your old mobile phone at one of our Age UK shops today, and we can recycle it to raise vital funds. We recycle with a company called zonzoo, and receive a minimum of £3 for every mobile phone donated.

Unfortunately we are not able to recycle phone chargers.

Toner and inkjet cartridges

Recycle your toner and inkjet cartridges at your Age UK shop and you will help older people, reduce landfill and preserve resources.

We work with Reclaim-it, a company that arranges cartridge recycling on behalf of charities. They can only recycle original cartridges manufactured by Brother, Canon, Dell, HP, IBM, LEX, QMS and Samsung.

How to donate used cartridges

To arrange a free collection:

• Check that you have at least 15 original cartridges
• In England, Scotland and Wales call 01635 876 900 or email info@reclaim-it.com; In Northern Ireland call 02890 230 666
• Please state that you would like the funds to go to Age UK

To ensure the cartridges don’t get damaged in transit, please send them in their original boxes (Reclaim-it can provide you with a sack to put these in) or call to request a box to put them in.

How to donate new cartridges

If you have unused new cartridges you don't want, contact Reclaim-it who may be able to purchase them from you.

Call 01635 876 900 and please remember to state that you want the proceeds to go to Age UK.

Foreign currency

If you’ve been abroad and have foreign currency left over, don’t let it gather dust – donate it to Age UK and we’ll put it to good use. We can accept notes and coins of any currency and old European currency, including old British money, which is no longer valid.

How to donate your currency

You can donate currency by taking it to your nearest Age UK shop. Alternatively, if you have coinage weighing over 8kg (that’s about 5 mugs full of coins), we'll collect it for free.

• Call us on 0800 169 8787 or email recycling@ageuk.org.uk to arrange a collection

You can also post your currency to us at:

Age UK Foreign Currency Appeal
Tavis House
1-6 Tavistock Square
London
WC1H 9NA

Computers

If you have a working PC or laptop you no longer want or use, why not donate it to Age UK? The proceeds of your donation will directly support our vital work training older people about computers and the internet, so they can enjoy the benefits offered by technology.

What happens to my old PC?

We know that your old PC may have personal, private information on it, so we guarantee to wipe it clean and securely remove all details to internationally approved standards. We also clean, test and then install Microsoft software to get the PC ready for its new home.

What do I donate?

All we need is the working PC desktop body or laptop along with the accessories that make up the computer (i.e. screen, mouse, cables, etc.). Unfortunately, we are unable to accept any monitors or other computer accessories donated separately. See details on how to donate toner or inkjet cartridges above.

Where do I donate my PC?

You can take your old PC to any of our 450 Age UK shops around the country. If you have more questions about Age UK's national computer refurbishment scheme, our FAQs may answer them:

Download our FAQs (PDF, 156KB)

Find your nearest Age UK shop

Age UK has over 450 charity shops throughout the UK, offering a wide and ever-changing range of goods at very reasonable prices. The shops provide a gateway to the whole charity and they act as recycling centres too.

Boost your donation through Gift Aid

Sign up for Gift Aid when you bring in your goods and increase the value of your donation by approximately 25%.

If you are a UK tax payer, just complete a simple declaration when you make a donation and we can claim 25p back in tax at no cost to you - your tax code won’t be affected either - so for every £10 we make from your donations, we get £12.50.

Once your donation has been sold, you will receive a notification by post or by email (which saves the charity money) for you to confirm you want the money raised donated under the Gift Aid scheme. You only need to reply if you don’t want to donate the proceeds of the sale.