Reader's letter: 'I worry about the future of Bluebell Wood charity shop'

As a volunteer at the Chapeltown shop, I have seen a number of ups and downs and about faces by senior management over the past couple of years. The latest, which is the immediate closure of all the hospice’s retail operations came as a surprise to staff and volunteers alike with a colleague preparing donations for resale only a few hours before closure, completely ignorant of what was going to happen.

Sadly, we all found out through social media rather than from the hospice, which suggests that volunteers are much less valued than the hospice likes to claim.

It is interesting that market conditions were cited as the reason for closure. The Chapeltown shop remained very busy, beating sales targets weekly. Ironically, the St Luke’s charity shop a few doors away is in the process of refurbishment, which would suggest that their management has a different view of the opportunities moving forward.

Volunteers are the lifeblood of the majority of charitable institutions. Bluebell Wood has done its reputation no good behaving in this manner.

Derek Bell

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