The Great Donate Freshers’ Week Success

On the Monday of Freshers’ Week, the Students’ Union hosted the first ever Great Donate sale, equipping dozens of students with new and pre-loved kitchen equipment for less than £3 per item.

The Great Donate is a new initiative from the Students’ Union to make better use of common household items traditionally thrown away by students when they leave university, by saving them for new and returning students. Not only does this prevent them from ending up in landfill, but it means students don’t have to spend large chunks of their student loan buying new household equipment when they arrive at UCLan.

Over the summer, we saw hundreds of items generously donated by the student and staff community from pots and pans, plates, cutlery, mugs, decorations and even an ironing board! These were carefully sorted and counted by student staff member and third year acting student Nisha Ogunrinde, who priced almost all items below £3 to maximise their affordability for students. Nisha also ran the stall during Freshers’ Week, which proved to be incredibly popular and raised just under £600 in a single day, a total that far exceeded expectations.

The Students’ Union has had a lot of demand for the Great Donate to return, and we can confirm that we will be continuing to collect donations throughout Semester 1, with the intention of re-opening the Great Donate in January as part of our Refreshers’ plans for new and returning students.

All money raised through the Great Donate is being kept aside for a campaign to further assist students with the cost of living in Semester 2, the details of which have yet to be decided but we expect to confirm following the second Great Donate sale in January.

Students’ Union President Luke Fitzgerald says, “I'm so proud that we have been able to not only provide students with affordable household supplies, but also raise so much money to help students through the cost of living crisis. I can't wait to see how this grows and impacts even more students over the next few years.”

We would like to thank everyone who donated over the Summer, from both the UCLan staff team and the student body. If you would like to get involved or find out more about the Great Donate, drop an email to suinformation@uclan.ac.uk or pop in to see us at the Welcome Point. Any donations can be dropped off with a member of the team on the bottom floor of the Students’ Union building between 10am and 4pm.