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\n The charity said it had no plans to close warehouses or shops but insiders fear that Batley, which houses Oxfam\u2019s main textile recycling centre, will shut as part of a cost-cutting drive because the West Yorkshire site\u2019s lease is up for renewal. All three warehouses together employ about 90 people.\n<\/p>\n
\n A source said Oxfam was considering closing up to 100 of its 500-plus UK outlets as sales at some were no longer viable but this has been refuted by Oxfam GB’s interim chief supporter officer Lorna Fallon.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cDonations have dropped off,\u201d the insider told The Guardian, adding that the charity\u2019s shops were also facing competition from online sellers of secondhand goods such as Vinted.\n<\/p>\n
\n READ MORE: UK charity shop chain announces closures\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cOxfam is always more expensive, and that\u2019s starting to have an effect,\u201d the source said.\n<\/p>\n
\n Oxfam – which opened the UK’s first charity shop in Broad Street, Oxford in 1947 – is not the only charity facing financial challenges.\n<\/p>\n
\n British Heart Foundation has announced the closure of 150 stores while Cancer Research UK is to shut 190 stores.\n<\/p>\n
\n Oxfam Activities is the charity\u2019s arm that aims to raise money through its trade in new items for sale in shops, its textile recycling plant in Batley and the provision of stewards for festivals. However, it made losses of more than \u00a32m in the year to March 2025 and in the year prior to that.\n<\/p>\n
\n READ MORE: 70s rock legend supports Oxfam\n<\/p>\n
\n Sales fell by seven per cent in the year to March 2025, driven by a fall in income from recycling. This division of the business does not include direct income from the stores.\n<\/p>\n
\n Sources fear for the future of the Batley site, which houses Oxfam\u2019s main textile recycling centre, because its lease is up for renewal.\n<\/p>\n
\n The first ever Oxfam shop in Broad Street Oxford (Image: Contributed)\n<\/p>\n
\n Ms Fallon said: \u201cIn the last financial year, Oxfam GB\u2019s shops, warehouses and online retail teams generated a \u00a36.3m (net) contribution to our humanitarian work, as well as raising dedicated funds through emergency appeals to support crises in Venezuela, the Middle East and Ukraine.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cAs is standard practice, we keep all parts of our retail operations under review via regular meetings.\n<\/p>\n
\n “While we cannot give guarantees in this difficult economic climate, we are confident in and positive about our current retail performance and do not have plans to close our shops or warehouses at this time.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\n The Oxfam superstore in Oxford (Image: Oxfam)\n<\/p>\n
\n Ms Fallon said Oxfam had launched a new online rental service recently and had brought fulfilment of online orders back in-house, as well as opening a second superstore, in Manchester.\n<\/p>\n
\n There is also a superstore at John Smith Drive at Oxford Business Park South in Cowley.\n<\/p>\n
\n Despite the ongoing financial pressures, staff and volunteers at Oxfam shops across the country continue to work hard to turn donations into cash for the needy in countries around the globe.\n<\/p>\n
\n Michila Wearn, manager of Oxfam in Abingdon, with Ray Jackson of Lindisfarne (Image: Oxfam)\n<\/p>\n
\n The charity is currently calling for donations in support of its annual Second Hand September campaign, which encourages people to donate and shop for pre-loved clothing.\n<\/p>\n
\n In July. the musician who played the mandolin on Rod Stewart\u2019s number one hit Maggie May bought a rare \u00a32,800 instrument from the Oxfam shop in Stert Street, Abingdon.\n<\/p>\n
\n Ray Jackson, a singer in the 1970s with Geordie band Lindisfarne, then celebrated the purchase with an impromptu performance for staff and customers.\n<\/p>\n
\n Mr Jackson’s partner first spotted the mandolin in Oxfam\u2019s cabinet and photographed it for him. He came in the following Saturday, tried it, and bought it on the spot.\n<\/p>\n
#Leading #charity #facing #uncertain #future<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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