Charity begins with the dustbin

Charity shops on West End Lane are complaining about the volume of rubbish among the goods that people donate to the shops to sell.

Volunteers at West Hampstead's Oxfam shop have told the Ham & High (not online) that they get CD cases with no CDs inside, books with pages torn out and clothes which go straight into the recycling bins.

Staff at the Cancer Research shop tell a similar story, saying it takes volunteers a lot of time to sort the saleable stuff from the rubbish. They urge donators to do this sorting themselves.

You can see their point, and this would explain why they might occasionally look a little askance when you walk in with a pile of clothes - not a reaction you'd ever encounter at the West Hampstead Community Association shop at the top of Broomsleigh Street.