Charity shop numbers flatline
Excuses to post links to my songs are rare, but one has just landed. Gallagher, who are an insurance brokers, risk managers and consultants based in Rolling Meadows, Illinois, have just released the UK Charity Shops Survey for 2017. It reveals that, 'for the first time in 17 years there has been no increase to the overall number of charity shops in the UK.' They report the two main reasons for this as increasing costs and a lack of volunteer hours:
The survey showed that average volunteer levels are at their lowest level for five years with 3.45% less volunteering than the previous year. Plus, the number of hours per volunteer has also decreased. This can be attributed in part to rising employment following the recession in 2008, so there are just less people out there with the time available to do voluntary work. (Gallagher, 2018)
I wrote Charity shop advert about 10 years ago. We recorded it in Wales in 2012 as a short 'commercial break' for the middle of my first (and so far only) album. I still harbor dreams of persuading the 80 or so UK charities who run shops in the UK to help me film and release an actual TV advert that celebrates charity shops in general and uses Charity Shop advert as the soundtrack!