'Everyone deserves to feel clean,' says poverty bank

The Hygiene Bank in Ipswich says it is supporting 500 people a week with donated products

A charity has collected and distributed more than 1,500kg of personal care products such as toothpaste and deodorants to people in need over the last six months.

The ethos of the Hygiene Bank Ipswich is "everyone deserves to feel clean" and project co-ordinator Laurie Salih said there was a great need for the service.

"People can't afford to buy the basic things that you would just generally add to your shopping... like shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste.

"Maybe you can't afford to buy washing powder so your children go to school in dirty clothes and actually there are teachers who are washing children's clothes for them - that's here, in Ipswich."

The charity has donation points across Ipswich, Woodbridge, Hadleigh and Stowmarket at shops such as Asda, Morrisons and Boots and libraries.

Smaller businesses are also coming on board to act as collection points, such as Studio and Cafe Flex fitness club on the outskirts of Ipswich, which has 350 members.

James Peasey, its manager, said: "I think we filled the bank three or four times in the first month so our clients are really happy to support the cause."

James Peasey said he had not previously been aware of the issue so was more than happy to raise awareness

The owner of Liberti's Hairdressing in Ipswich, Pauline Liberti, was happy to have a donation box in the salon.

"We have clients who've now committed to coming weekly and they'll bring a shower gel or something else when they have their hair appointment," she said.

"I think we've all been in a desperate situation and we can all appreciate we're only one step away sometimes from being homeless ourselves."

Pauline Liberti has a donation box in her hair salon in Ipswich

Despite the support, Ms Salih said the Hygiene Bank was still struggling to meet demand and the pressure was likely to increase in the run-up to Christmas.

"We're supporting 10 different charities; we've got people on our waiting list that we can't yet help because we haven't got enough products coming in... probably around 500 people a week are being supported," she said.

"That's a lot of products; that's a lot of people in need."