POTTERIES CENTRE JOINS FORCES WITH LOCAL ORGANISATIONS TO LAUNCH NEW WINTER INITIATIVES

The Potteries Centre has announced a number of practical initiatives to help those in need during the upcoming winter months.

The shopping and leisure destination has partnered with Stoke on Trent City Council and Newcastle under Lyme Borough Council homelessness teams to set up a donation station for hats, scarves and gloves, to help children and adults across the county keep warm throughout the colder season.

Those wanting to contribute can find the donation station on the upper mall by Jack & Jones, where it will be open for visitors to donate items. Hats, scarves and gloves are available for purchase from various tenants throughout the centre, including Primark, New Look and H&M. 

In addition to its donation station, The Potteries Centre is contributing £1,000 towards the City Council’s ‘Stronger Together Through Winter’ programme, alongside taking part in further initiatives:

• The Potteries Centre is offering a free pop-up community kitchen space in partnership with VAST (Voluntary Action Stoke on Trent) for local organisations to use to set up a soup kitchen or a food bank.

• The centre is also opening up its lower mall Study Room as a ‘welcoming space’ for people to meet, socialise and access resources about the cost of living crisis. The room is heated and equipped with free Wi-Fi and phone charging points.

• Teaming up with healthcare giant, Superdrug, the centre has donated a further £1,000 towards the Middleport Matters sanitary pack project, ensuring that women across the city have easy access to hygiene products.

Commenting on the ‘community support package’, Amy Whittaker, centre manager at The Potteries Centre, said:

“We know these next few months are set to be challenging, with the increasing cost of living putting extra pressure on us all. Here at The Potteries Centre, and in association with some fantastic local organisations, we are striving to put practical support in place to help those in our community who need it most. 

“The kitchen unit is set-up and ready to be used as a place to prep and serve food, and our welcoming space, formerly the Study Room, offers warm respite and useful facilities. We’re also encouraging anyone visiting the centre to donate any unwanted hats, gloves and scarves over the course of the next few weeks, especially as the night’s grow darker and colder.

“We are humbled and proud to be able to collaborate with so many local organisations and provide valuable aid so they can continue to undertake their life-changing work. Our wonderful and diverse Stoke-on-Trent community is known for banding together when times are tough.”

To find out more about The Potteries Centre’s community support package, visit:

https://potteriescentre.co.uk/