Charity blown away with donated football kits

A charity best known for upcycling used bath tubs has launched a scheme to recycle football kits to pass on to low income families.

Peterborough-based Up The Garden Bath said it had asked people to donate kits, including shirts and boots, that it could sell on at an "affordable cost".

The Goal2Grow project was launched on 17 May at the Peterborough Celebrates Festival.

Charity founder Dave Poulton said he had been "blown away" by the 35 shirts so far donated.

The organisation runs UNITY, a community shop in Queensgate, which sells products from 50 small businesses.

Mr Poulton also runs an educational workshop alongside volunteers at Central Park in the city, to teach people about gardening, recycling, sustainability and wildlife preservation - as well as equipping them with practical DIY skills.

With the Goal2Grow project, donated football kits will be cleaned and sold at the UNITY store for about £10.

Money raised would support more educational and environmental projects in Peterborough and Cambridgeshire, Mr Poulton said.

"The project champions sustainability by extending the life of valuable sportswear, reducing textile waste and removing financial barriers that can prevent young people from participating in sport," explained Mr Poulton.

"It is about inclusion, wellbeing and giving everyone a fair chance to enjoy the game.

"At the festival, there was a man in football shirt who took his top off and walked around the festival without a shirt.

"That's how powerful this campaign is turning out to be.

"The response is amazing. We have started collecting shirts which could cost anywhere of around £60 or more."

Earlier this month, he attended a Buckingham Palace garden party with his daughter where he could meet King Charles III.

Mr Poulton said it was an "honour" to be in his presence and said it served to raise awareness of what the charity had achieved.

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