Employees from Amazon’s head office in Shoreditch have come together to pack and donate 2,500 backpacks filled with essential back-to-school items worth more than £30,000 to help ensure London school children experiencing poverty are equipped for the new school year.
The backpacks which contain stationary supplies, water bottles, and scientific calculators for secondary pupils, were donated to Felix’s Multibank, London’s first Multibank, which was launched in July by The Felix Project with support from Amazon, former Prime Minister Gordon Brown, and Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan. They will be distributed to children in need across the capital before the start of the new academic year.
Felix’s Multibank in Greenford is a community donations hub, offering support to families experiencing poverty across London. It distributes surplus essentials, like toiletries, baby products, cleaning goods and bedding donated by Amazon, and other national and regional businesses, directly to those in need.
Felix’s Multibank builds on The Felix Project’s established work rescuing high quality surplus food that would otherwise have gone to waste and redistributing it to vulnerable Londoners through a network of charities, schools and community groups. Distribution partners for Felix’s Multibank include Little Village, Trussell Trust, Lambeth Healthy Living Platform, Surplus to Supper, and St Raphael’s Family Wellbeing Centre.
Charlotte Hill OBE, CEO at The Felix Project said: “The start of a new school year should be an exciting time for families but with the cost of living crippling so many in our communities, it’s become yet another financial worry for them. Through the donation of these back-to-school essentials from Amazon, Felix’s Multibank hopes to provide children with the quality items they need to start the new school year ready to learn and with a smile on their faces.”
One of the volunteers from Amazon in Shoreditch who packed the back-to-school kits, Emily Crane added: “As someone who grew up in London, I’m passionate about supporting my community and I’m glad that my colleagues at Amazon share this passion. It was great to support Felix’s Multibank in the run-up to the back-to-school season, which can be a worrying time for parents and pupils on low-incomes across the capital.”
One of the organisations to have already received the bags is 214 Space in Notting Hill. The charity gave the bags out at a special back to school event for local young people. Samia Badani is the CEO and said: “The donation of school backpacks and supplies could not have come at a better time for families in London. We value our partnership with The Felix Project and through their support, we are in a position to support families during challenging times. Our event was well attended by families who are struggling to afford basic necessities. We have witnessed first-hand the hardship they face and seen the enormous pressure placed on parents to ensure their children are ready for school. It was not just parents; we saw an increasing number of young people coming forward for help with schoolbooks and stationery. It is only through multi-sector collaboration that we can all start addressing challenges which ultimately impact on the education of these children and young people.”
