Oban Baptist Church’s uniform swap shop is calling on people to keep using it - and say its popularity has skyrocketed.
It is a handy service for parents and pupils that offers used uniforms free of charge, and due to the rate at which children grow is proving a vital community resource.
Despite the name, it does not require users to donate or swap anything to receive clothing in return.
What began in 2021 from a small cupboard in Oban Baptist Church has now ballooned into one of its most popular services, taking up an entire office space.
From 2021 until the end of 2023, 200 bags of clothes were donated to families, in 2024 alone use jumped to 275.
A total of 41 have already been given out this year and church volunteers estimate that £19,000 has been saved since the service began.
Due to its importance, the shop has started receiving donations from local charity shops, schools’ unclaimed lost and founds, and even from Tesco’s unsold uniforms.
Church volunteer Helen Lawson said: "It’s available for everybody.
"Life is really expensive nowadays, everything is, groceries, fuel for your car and the like. But I think people’s awareness of the need to not keep buying more and more stuff has increased, as has the wisdom of reusing and recycling.
"There’s no requirement to bring anything to swap, that is great, but there’s always stuff to go around."
If you want to make use of the swap shop, you can contact them by emailing obcschooluniform@outlook.com or messaging on Facebook.
The best time to visit the shop is on the first Saturday of the month between 10am and 2pm, but you can drop into the church to find out more at any time.
Oban Baptist Church is still fundraising for its rebuild.
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