SHOP
* Important announcement *
The Home-Start Deeside, Alford and Strathdon scheme has been supporting families with young children in our community for 18 years. To ensure the long-term sustainability of supporting families in our area, the Trustees have carried out a review of all our services. We have identified areas where we must reorganise our operations.
It is with great sadness we announce we can no longer continue operating our shop in Alford. This shop will close on Friday 31st October 2025.
The shop has had a dedicated team of staff, volunteers and donors. We thank each and everyone who has contributed to the charity over the years.
Home-Start will continue to support families in the area, and we are working on ways that Home-Start can expand its support to reach more families than ever.
Home-Start Deeside, Alford & Strathdon
59 Main Street
Alford
AB33 8PX
Open Monday to Saturday (except Wednesday) 10am until 4pm
Wednesdays 10am until 1pm
Tel: 019755 62398
Email: alfordshop@homestartdeeside.org
Meet the shop team!
Rona Allan – Shop Manager
Helen Gabriel – Shop Coordinator
Annie McGregor – Shop Coordinator
About our shop
Our Shop is based in Alford and is run by a team of friendly volunteers.
All the money raised at the shop goes towards helping families within the local area.
Free on-street parking is available at the front of our shop. Free parking is also found in the local village car parks.
We are able to accept cash and debit card payments within our shops.
Any item can be refunded within 14 days of purchase, as long as a valid receipt is provided.
We will hold items for customers for a maximum of 24 hours.
How can I donate to the charity shop?
**PLEASE SEE OUR NOTICES PAGE FOR CURRENT CHANGES TO THE WAY WE ACCEPT DONATIONS**
Please bring your items to the shops during opening hours. One of our helpful volunteers will take your items into our store room for sorting. We ask that you don’t leave any donation items unattended at our shop fronts or office front door.
If you are a UK taxpayer, you may be asked if you want to “Gift Aid” your donation – this means that the charity can receive an extra 25p from the Government, for every £1 they raise from selling your goods.
In order to join this scheme, our volunteers simply take a few details from yourself and then issue you with a handy little card that you can place into your purse/wallet for future use.
Even items of clothing or materials that are past their best can be taken to the shop. Just mark them as ‘rag’ and we can send them away to be recycled. This raises extra money for us.
Here are a few things to think about when donating items to our shop
-
Charity shop work because they can sell items with a second life. Please check your donations are both clean and functional e.g. no tears or broken zips on clothes. - You are helping a good cause AND the environment – re-use is even better than recycling.
- The best way to donate is to take items directly to your local charity shop.
- If you have more specialist items, for example, electrical goods or furniture, it is best to check that the charity shop can accept these items for re-sale before donating.
- If you are not sure whether your clothes can be re-sold please donate them anyway – whatever items a charity shop can’t sell can be sent off off for further re-use or recycling!
What items will the shop accept?
We sell a wide range of goods, including accessories, bags, books, clothing, crockery, games, films, jewellery, music, ornaments, paintings, shoes and toys. We can also sell small electrical items such as lamps, hairdryers etc. More unusual items such as sports equipment, musical instruments and home furnishings, will also be welcomed. We are not able to take large items of furniture or large electrical goods.
When taking items to the shop, please consider “would someone else want this?”. If items are broken or have missing parts, we will not be able to resell them. However, all clothing – even if it has a tear or a hole – can be used to raise vital funds for our charity. Any items of clothing/material that we are unable to resell is then passed on to be recycled, raising more funds for us.
If you are in doubt please just give us a call on 019755 62398
