Pilgrims Hospices announces closure of Concession at Blue Diamond Garden Centre
We are sorry to announce the permanent closure of our concession within the Blue Diamond Garden Centre on the Stour Business Park at Chartham, effective Saturday, 13th January 2024.
Over the years, we have enjoyed a positive working relationship with Blue Diamond, who are the primary leaseholder, and we respect their decision to utilise the building for their own purposes. We are actively seeking new premises in the local area and are committed to announcing our new location as soon as possible.
We express our sincere gratitude to all the dedicated staff and volunteers who have been an integral part of the shop, as well as to the local community for their support over the past 12 years. Thank you for your generosity. It’s been a privilege to be part of your community.
While bidding farewell to our current location, Pilgrims Hospices Retail will not be leaving the area entirely. We encourage you to continue supporting our hospice through our Furniture Shop, where donations are welcome. The Furniture Shop is conveniently located at the back of Stour Valley Business Park, opposite the car wash.
We extend our heartfelt thanks for your understanding and ongoing support, and we look forward to sharing updates with you in the New Year. Until then, we would like to wish everyone a very happy Christmas and best wishes for the New Year.
15th August 2023
Media Madness this August for Pilgrims charity shop in Ashford
The Media Madness event takes place at Pilgrims Hospices Shop in Ashford, from August 24th to 26th, 2023. The ‘all things media’ event, will cater for media enthusiasts, collectors, and those who love to seek out a pre-loved treasure, or just to make an impulse purchase.
With a wide range of media-related items, the event will showcase, vinyl records, CD’s, toys and collectables, including Star Wars figures, books by actors, celebrities and bands, TV annuals, memorabilia, musical instruments, puzzles, games and anything and everything in between. The long-established, charity shop, in Castle Street, (located near the WWI tank just off the High Street), will be covering everything from movie stars to pop stars and far beyond!
Sandra Wonnacott, Pilgrims Shop Manager said: “We really hope our media event will cater for a wide variety of interests, there are some really unusual items and great bargains for everyone to browse.
“We are ready to welcome our regular customers who know there are some wonderful bargains on our shelves, along with new visitors to the shop. We hope the Media Madness event will bring more visitors to the Ashford shop, which in turn, will raise even more important funds for essential hospice services.”
DSC 0012 Media Madness HP Web 2
If you’re interested in media-related items, pop culture, and supporting a good cause, this event will be a fantastic opportunity to indulge your interests, while making a positive impact on the lives of those in need. Enjoy the event and the chance to connect with fellow media enthusiasts while supporting your local Pilgrims Hospices charity. Be sure to mark your calendar for August 24-26!
We are ready to welcome everyone to our exciting event!
Sandra – Pilgrims
It will be a great opportunity to explore a diverse collection of media-related items, while contributing to a meaningful cause.
Sandra added: “Young or old, there are so many bargains to be had. Whether it’s a piece of artwork for your wall, a cuddly Disney toy, Harry Potter merchandise, or a CD to extend your collection. We will do our best to help you find it in our little shop bursting with goodies.”
Supporting a charitable cause while enjoying a fun and unique shopping experience is a great way to bring the community together.
Care is provided from three hospice sites in Ashford, Canterbury and Thanet as well as in patients’ own homes. To offer these services to patients and their families the charity must raise £11 million each year from the generous local community.
28th July 2023
Happy 1st Birthday to Store50
After a dynamic year of trading, Store50, Pilgrims Hospices’ newest shop, celebrates its 1st Birthday on Friday 4th August. Located at 50 St. Peter’s Street, Canterbury, in the heart of the city, the charity shop really has taken pre-loved fashion to the next level. While aiming to make second-hand fashion affordable, chic and eco-friendly at the same time, Store50 has sold goods to the sum of £151,568.08 in its first year of trading.
In the busy year of stocking a diverse range of clothing for all, with a focus on ‘slow fashion’, advocating respect for people and the environment, often through reducing, reusing and recycling, rather than purchasing new items. This trendy little shop has served more than 16,500 customers, and sold almost 28,000 items, whilst saving large quantities of clothing from being sent to land fill.
As part of the birthday celebrations, and to thank our customers, we are giving FREE goody bags; to every customer that purchases on the 4th August. As sustainability is the main focus of Store50, all bags will contain pre-loved items for shoppers.
The store will also be celebrating the success of sportswear sales, by opening a brand new stand along department for branded and chic sports gear. The sportswear hub for savvy Pilgrims shoppers, will be located in the rear of the shop.
The shop has eight volunteers who support across all elements of the retail shop, helping the manger Amy Eldridge to keep the stock vibrant, tagged, sized and priced and steaming ready for sale.
Mandy Hawkett, Retail Area Manager said: “We are so proud of our volunteers, with their support we are achieving something very special for local shoppers, and raising funds for hospice care within the local community. We really appreciate everything they do, and would like to take this opportunity to thank them publicly. The volunteers run the till, meet and greet customers, tidy the shop floor, and keep our shelves stocked. They are always smiling and welcoming; they are the face that customers’ see when they walk through our shop doorway. We couldn’t run our store without their amazing efforts!
Although we thought the shop would particularly appeal to Canterbury’s thriving student population, we are delighted to say our trendy threads appeal to everyone’s budget and suit every wardrobe, our customers come from all walks of life.
Currently trending on our rails are dresses, sportswear and the ever popular rag denim, were you can purchase items from as little as £3.
We’re very excited to be launching the new sportwear department. We hope that by encouraging shoppers to thrift, and be mindful about their purchases, we can help to build a more sustainable retail economy that benefits people and our planet. By shopping with us, you will help to stop items going to landfill, save precious pennies, and also contribute to Pilgrims’ vital services across east Kent – supporting our charity to provide compassionate care to patients and families where and when they need it the most.
Don’t forget to bring your student card, you will receive 10% discount too!
Store50 is open 10:00-18:00 Monday-Saturday and 10:00-16:00 on Sundays.
Pilgrims Hospices care for thousands of local people each year, free of charge, during the most challenging time in their lives. They offer care and support in people’s own homes, in the community, and in their inpatient units as well as running a 24-hour advice line.
11th April 2023
UNFRAMED mural festival and art trail arrives in Ashford
Follow the Ashford UNFRAMED 2023 art trail this April half term, and be amazed by the murals created by national and local artists, who have transformed blank walls in Ashford town centre, into a sea of colour and creativity.
Kate Duddell from Pilgrims’ fundraising team with Chris Dixon from Ashford Borough Council / Mural art by Will Redgrove on Pilgrims’ Ashford General shop
Sue Sharp with artist Will Redgrove
At the UNFRAMED launch, Sue Sharp, Pilgrims Hospices Director of Income Generation and Marketing, met mural artist Will Redgrove, painter of Pilgrims Hospices shop on Castle Street with his interpretation of the work of Pilgrims. The masterpiece depicts three blue tits representing the three Pilgrims Hospices; a ribbon in flight within a field of bluebells, forget-me-nots and sunflowers. A meaningful and peaceful representation of everlasting love, memory and care, which, is at the heart of Pilgrims Hospices’ vision.
Visitors to the festival can download a map, scan a QR code at each site, or pick up a physical map from Coachworks, Low Key Tap Room, Picturehouse or Made in Ashford and wander around the town centre immersing themselves in the street art and learning more about each piece.
The mural festival is running from Saturday 1 April to Sunday 16 April 2023, with arts workshops, street dance and film screenings available to all visitors.
Keep up with all the latest updates as they happen and watch the progress of the artwork being created by following @ashfordunframedon Instagram.
Pilgrims Hospices care for thousands of local people each year, free of charge, during the most challenging time in their lives. They offer care and support in people’s own homes, in the community and in their inpatient units as well as running a 24-hour advice line.
9th March 2023
UNFRAMED, Ashford’s first mural festival is coming to the town centre and a Pilgrims Hospices shop near you!
Pilgrims Hospices are proud to be one of 14 special locations taking part in Ashford’s first mural festival, UNFRAMED!
Ashford will be turned into a vibrant masterpiece as a number of national and local artists take to its streets to transform blank walls into a sea of colour and creativity. All of the murals are in close proximity of each other around the town centre and will be part of the UNFRAMED art trail for local residents and visitors to enjoy.
Curated by street art and mural experts Accent London and The London Mural Company, artists include Mr Doodle, Alex Chinneck, Charley Peters, Will Redgrove, Curtis Hylton, Andy Welland, and many more.
Pilgrims Hospices’ location will be at one of its charity retail stores and its well-loved Castle Street shop will be the canvas. Here, a spectacular and themed artwork will be revealed and has been curated by Will Redgrove in association with the hospice team.
The painting will be one of the last to be curated, just before the art trail formerly opens to the public.
The charity have worked closely with the artist, Will Redgrove, to ensure that the design has hospice meaning and resonates with trail viewers, whilst also showing nature in a vibrant and bold setting.
Pilgrims Hospices representative, Kate Duddell, said: “At its heart, Pilgrims Hospices is dedicated to ensuring people living with an incurable illness can access the quality care and comfort they deserve. Our environment is so important and we wanted to work closely with Will to ensure that this masterpiece has meaning and the elements represent what the hospice is all about, yet in an abstract way.”
Nature is the focus of the Pilgrims mural and it’s nothing new that spending time in the great outdoors and within a natural setting does wonders for our physical health and mental wellbeing. With all these benefits, it’s little wonder why nature is the focus of the Pilgrims artwork. It is a meaningful representation of everlasting love, gratitude, respect, memory and care, which the natural symbols within the artwork represent; all of which are important in Pilgrims’ daily work in caring for the east Kent community at the end of life.
Kate added: “People think that hospices are sad places, but really they are places to help our patients live fully and well in the time that they have. Our welcoming facilities and gardens enable families, carers and patients to have a brighter and inspiring setting for their care. Hospices aren’t places to be fearful of – they’re places that remove fears within natural and safe surroundings.”
Visitors to the festival will be able to download a map, scan a QR code at each site, or pick up a physical map from Coachworks, Low Key Tap Room, Picturehouse or Made in Ashford and wander around the town centre immersing themselves in the street art and learning more about each piece.
The mural festival will run from Saturday 1 April to Sunday 16 April 2023, with arts workshops, street dance and film screenings available to all visitors.
Keep up with all the latest updates as they happen and watch the progress of the artwork being created by following @ashfordunframedon Instagram.
Pilgrims Hospices care for thousands of local people each year, free of charge, during the most challenging time in their lives. They offer care and support in people’s own homes, in the community and in their inpatient units as well as running a 24-hour advice line.
7th March 2023
The positive impact of Pilgrims Hospices shops
Pilgrims Hospices has 31 shops across east Kent where we sell the generous donations we receive, and our shops have many positive impacts.
Firstly, they help to provide the much-needed funds that support the work of the hospices across east Kent. This is, of course, our primary objective, and we are very proud that each year we are able to grow the contribution we make to the hospices. Our shops will have a turnover of over £5m in 2023, which is a huge help to the hospices.
Each year, we sell around 1.3m items through our shops, many of which would end up in landfill if it wasn’t for charity shops. Of course, not everything is fit for sale, so we sell some stock to textile recyclers, who then sort it and sell it on to other countries or recycle it. Each year, we sell over 250 tonnes of ‘rag textiles’, which would otherwise end up in waste streams.
The shops also form part of their local communities and are a welcoming place for people to volunteer. Volunteering is cited as having a really positive impact on mental health, as it makes people feel good about what they are doing, provides company and conversation, and offers the chance to learn new skills.
Pilgrims’ Kilo Sale event, May 2022
As people move away from fast fashion due to the negative environmental impact it has, sustainable fashion is becoming increasingly popular. Charity shops have always been advocates of sustainable fashion, and people are now more comfortable buying pre-loved fashion than ever before; 54% of people in the UK are happy to purchase pre-loved or vintage clothing. As the demand for sustainable fashion grows, we are going to need even more stock in our shops!
A recent survey by the organisation WRAP* found that almost half of us buy new clothing at least once per month, and around half of the new garments bought are either never worn or only worn once or twice. This is a shocking statistic, but one that is of particular interest to Pilgrims Retail. The report goes on to say that, on average, each UK adult has 118 items of clothing in their wardrobe, and that 26% of those items have not been worn for over a year, and are likely never to be worn again.
Just imagine how useful those unworn, unloved items of clothing would be to our shops! We could turn them into funds for our hospices.
How about having a declutter for Pilgrims? Our shops would welcome your donations. We especially need items of clothing, small electricals (that are working), toys, household items (ornaments, kitchen goods, dinnerware etc.) and furniture.
*WRAP (Waste and Resources Action Programme) is a climate action NGO working around the globe to tackle the causes of the climate crisis and give the planet a sustainable future.
Each year, Pilgrims Hospices give care and comfort to thousands of people in east Kent coming to terms with an illness that sadly cannot be cured. The charity supports patients to live life as well as possible until the very end, free from pain and distress. Care is provided from three hospice sites in Ashford, Canterbury and Thanet, as well as in patients’ own homes. To offer these services to patients and their families the charity must raise £11 million each year from the generous local community.
