Back To School: Empowering Futures Through Education

Our Back to School initiative focuses on collecting and distributing essential school supplies to children whose families are facing financial difficulties. It's more than just a seasonal effort; it's a year-round commitment to fostering the next generation’s success! 

Items we need

By donating to our Back to School campaign, you can play an integral role in alleviating some of the burden for these families, enabling their children to embark on the academic year with confidence and enthusiasm. Below is a list of items we currently need. Please note we are only accepting NEW items:

• Pens
• Pencils
• Felt tips
• Post-it-notes
• Highlighters
• Pencil cases
• Rubbers
• Pencil sharpeners
• Scissors
• Glue sticks
• Notepads
• Maths geometry sets
• Rucksacks

The Aim of the Back to School Initiative

The primary aim of our Back to School initiative is to extend a helping hand to those who need it the most by ensuring that every child has the necessary tools to succeed in their education. In recent years, the cost of living crisis has hit families hard, particularly those already struggling to make ends meet. For many, the added expenses of the new school year can be overwhelming. School uniforms, backpacks, stationery, and other essential supplies can put a significant strain on family budgets.

• Financial Strain: Many families across the UK face financial challenges that make it difficult to afford basic school supplies. With rising costs, parents are often forced to make tough choices between essential items.
• Educational Disparities: Children from low-income families are at a disadvantage when they lack the necessary tools for their education. This can lead to disparities in academic performance and overall school experience.
• Mental and Emotional Stress: The inability to provide for their children’s educational needs can cause significant stress for parents and guardians. For children, not having the right supplies can lead to feelings of embarrassment, anxiety, and decreased self-esteem.

How Does It Help?

Our goal is to alleviate some of the financial burdens that many parents face as the new school year approaches, ensuring that every child starts the year with confidence and the right equipment. Our Back to School initiative directly addresses some of the challenges by ensuring that children have the supplies they need to succeed in school. Here's how the initiative makes a difference:

• Relieving Financial Pressure:By providing essential stationery and equipment, we relieve families of the financial pressure associated with back-to-school shopping. This allows parents to allocate their limited resources to other critical needs such as food, housing, and utilities.
• Promoting Educational Equality: When every child has the necessary supplies, it levels the playing field. Students are better able to focus on their studies and participate fully in classroom activities, which promotes equality and inclusivity in education, regardless of a family's financial situation.
• Building Confidence: Having the right tools for school can significantly boost a child's confidence and sense of belonging. It helps them start the school year with a positive mindset, ready to engage and learn.

Easing the Financial Burden: Lily's Story

Lily, a single parent, was stretched thin financially, struggling to afford food, clothing, and travel expenses for her children to attend school. The constant worry about providing for her sons only added to her stress and anxiety. Through our partnership with Herts Young Homeless, we were able to deliver a comprehensive care package to Lily, including clothing, essential toiletries, and basic school supplies such as stationery and equipment including rucksacks. This support significantly eased her financial burden, allowing her to focus on other essential needs.

Read more

How You Can Get Involved

There are several ways you can support our Back to School campaign:

• Donate School Supplies: Review the items we need and donate them.
• Donate Funds: Help us deliver your donations to the people who need them by making a contribution to our transportation costs.
• Collection Drives: Organise a collection drive at your workplace, school, or community centre. 
• Volunteer: Your time and effort are invaluable. Help us sort and pack supplies for distribution or assist in delivering supplies to families across Watford and Greater London.

Organise a collection

Why not arrange a collection with friends, through a community group or through your  school or workplace?  We're on hand to support you every step of the way to make your event a success, and we've made it easy for you to promote, simply download the poster which details the items we need, and arrange your event. Once you've held your event you can arrange for delivery to our Watford facility.  If you're thinking about organising an event and need support, contact our Community Relationships Coordinator, Naomi Bhundia by emailing: naomi.bhundia@goodsforgood.org.uk

Download poster

Arrange delivery

If you live in Watford or the surrounding area all you need to do is email us and arrange a time to drop-off your donation.

Email us

If you live outside of Watford and want to post your items to us, simply download the packaging label, by clicking the link below, attaching it to your parcel and sending it via your local Post Office or courier service.

Download packaging label 

Get In Touch

For more information on how you can support the Back to School initiative, please contact us by emailing: naomi.bhundia@goodsforgood.org.uk