The UK charity shop

[00:00.13] What do you do with old stuff? That top you bought for a party three years ago, for example.

[00:06.24] You wore it once and it's been hanging in your wardrobe ever since. You could throw it away, but that seems wasteful – after all it's still perfectly usable.

[00:17.13] So, what to do? In the UK, we might take it to a charity shop.

[00:23.50] The first charity shops appeared in Britain in the 19th Century.

[00:27.75] The Salvation Army, a UK charity, was one of the first to run a second-hand clothing shop to provide the impoverished and needy with affordable clothes.

[00:38.11] This was followed by charities such as the British Red Cross, who also relieved hardship and raised money for the war effort during World War Two.

[00:46.35] The modern form we know today was opened in 1947 by Oxfam.

[00:52.19] These days, charity shops are a common sight with around 11,200 shops across the UK, according to the Charity Retail Association.

[01:01.22] During business hours any member of the public can donate their unwanted items to a charity shop – clothes, books, electronics, furniture.

[01:10.52] Most charity shops will take anything. These items are checked for wear and tear and if found still serviceable, priced up to be sold at a heavily discounted price.

[01:21.67] For many, this is a win-win situation.

[01:24.60] To the charity, it means a valuable source of revenue, which they can use to pursue their charitable aim.

[01:33.63] To the consumer, it provides the opportunity to buy, often extremely cheaply, items and clothes.

[01:37.08] Though previously owned, they are durable. To the donator, it declutters and may help to assuage consumer guilt.

[01:46.38] “You can make a pretty good case to yourself that you are doing good, because what you are doing is going towards a charitable cause [and] you are saving stuff from landfill,” Clare Press, fashion journalist and sustainable style advocate, tells the Guardian.

[02:09.49] Indeed, approximately £140 million worth of clothing alone goes into landfill each year, according to UK charity WRAP, the Waste and Resources Action Programme.

[02:14.80] There are sometimes hidden treasures for the buyers, too.

[02:17.99] On more than one occasion a buyer has purchased something very cheaply, only to later discover its true value – such as a screen print bought for 99p and later found to be by English artist Ben Nicholson.

[02:31.80] It sold at auction for £4,200. So next time you need to rid yourself of something, spare a thought for the charity shop – after all, charity begins at home!