RESIDENTS are being urged to donate their warm winter coats to people in need this year.

Rotary Clubs across South Cumbria are joining forces to collect unwanted clothes and redistribute them through local charities and community organisations to those most in need.

Between Monday, October 11 and Friday, October 22 people are encouraged to take their unwanted coats to one of more than 20 collection sites spread around Barrow, Ulverston, Milnthorpe, Kendal and Windermere and pop them into the clearly branded white collection box.

The barrow collection boxes will be located at: Corrie and Co, Barrow Market, Ken Riley Barbers, The Royal British Legion, Furness College, Barrow Sixth Form and more.

You can find your nearest one by visiting the website at www.wrapupcumbria.co.uk and select South Cumbria.

Peter Garwood, chairman of community for the Rotary Club of Furness, said he was excited to see the project go ahead after a previous successful year where they had more than 2,000 coats donated.

Peter said: “The whole project is short - two weeks collecting and two weeks to sort and distribute them.

“We will be distributing them to 10 local charities in the area dealing with refugees, children and the homeless."

New to this year, the volunteers will be quarantining the coats for 72 hours because of Covid in a sorting facility shop in town provided by Barrow Council.

Peter said it was important they collected thick, useable, winter coats for men, women, young people, children and babies so they were covering every basis.

“There is no point giving us a coat that has half a sleeve missing." he said.

“If there is a zip broken or a button missing we will do something about getting them fixed or if it can’t it will go to a charity in Preston which will forward them on to refugee camps which they aren’t worried about if it has a missing button. They are grateful they have a jacket on their back.

“We use and repair everything we can so someone will benefit from the donations.”