Volunteers overwhelmed by aid donations for Calais refugees

So many items have been donated to the collection in Oswestry that the music venue being used to store tents, clothes and other donated items has had to cancel events as there is no room for an audience.

The collection has been organised by Chalk in Leg Street, with donations being taken to Hermon Chapel in Chapel Street where they are being sorted by a team of volunteers.

Once sorted, the items are being packed into boxes ready to be loaded on to two vans which are due to go out to Calais next week for refugees living in 'the jungle' camps just outside the French port.

Duncan Kerr, who owns Hermon Chapel, said: "We had a gig arranged for Friday but then people from Chirk did a community collection for us and we were suddenly overwhelmed with the response.

"The church is full from pews to balcony with a mix of sleeping bags, tents and so on, all waiting to be sorted and packed.

Kerr, who is a Green Party councillor, added: "It is a bit of a logistical problem and we've had to cancel a few events, but compared to the tragedy that's befallen the people who are living in the Calais camps it's pretty minor."

The appeal had called for blankets, sleeping bags, tents and tarpaulins, toiletries and even pots and pans, as well as various clothes.

But Wendy Keats, director of Chalk, said they had been given so many women's and children's clothes that they held a stall on the open air market to try to raise money to cover some of the costs of transporting the donations.

"We can't take those clothes with us so we put them on the market stall for 50p an item," she said.

"We still need to raise £300 for the cost of hiring the vans and paying for the fuel and ferry costs.

"We really appreciate everything that's been donated, but if anyone wants to give something now, money would be the most helpful thing.

"Any money we get left over from the costs of the trip will be given to the refugees to use."

Mrs Keats said they had been thrilled and surprised with the amount of items which have been donated.

"We've been very surprised by the response. It's been fantastic," she said.

"We've been inundated daily, and we had about 30 volunteers to help us sort. People have been so generous."

Anyone wanting to donate towards the costs of the trip can give donations to Chalk in Leg Street, Oswestry.