Hygiene Poverty Campaign Launched

Hygiene bank collection points have been introduced in over 45 Lincolnshire Co-op pharmacies, helping to tackle hygiene poverty, which is a growing problem across the region.

Customers are being encouraged to donate hygiene essentials like deodorant, soap, toothpaste, toilet roll, sanitary products, washing up liquid, laundry detergent, nappies, pull ups, wipes, shower gel, shampoo and conditioner. Products will be collected from the donation points and delivered to an assigned charity or good cause. They will then be distributed to those in need.

Lincolnshire Co-op is supporting a total of 16 different charities throughout this campaign, including hygiene banks, domestic abuse services, homelessness support and foodbanks. Each pharmacy is linked to a nearby group, so the impact is felt firsthand in local communities.

In Spilsby Pharmacy, items that are donated within the branch are collected for the East Lindsey Food Bank Collective.

Pharmacy Service Assistant Lara Daintree said: “The hygiene bank collection points are a hugely positive step towards improving the quality of life of people who are struggling within our communities during this difficult time.

‘‘The most popular items that have been donated in our branch are toothbrushes and sanitary products. Even cotton wool has been donated, which I myself may have overlooked, but products like that are universal and can be really useful.”

Lisa Saxon, a fellow Pharmacy Service Assistant in Spilsby stressed the importance of donating, saying: “It’s easy to take items like deodorant and shower gels for granted, because they’re promoted as luxury items sometimes, rather than something that everyone needs.”

The Lincoln Hygiene Bank, which operates in multiple sites within Lincoln, is the local charity supported by Newark Road Hykeham Pharmacy, Hykeham Village Pharmacy, Forum Pharmacy, Brant Road Pharmacy and Sincil Street Pharmacy.

Lincoln Hygiene Bank Project Co-ordinator Melissa Wheeler said: “Hygiene poverty can affect the physical and mental health and wellbeing of individuals and families. Poor hygiene can be degrading and embarrassing, and it can break down a person’s social life and self-confidence.

“Hygiene products can be expensive, which makes them inaccessible to people who are struggling during this difficult time. But feeling clean isn’t a luxury. Everybody deserves to be clean.”

Find the list of charities and causes Lincolnshire Co-op is supporting and access more information about the hygiene bank campaign here: lincolnshire.coop/hygienebanks