NEW WALTON CHARITY SHOP OPENS ITS DOORS

Shoppers in Walton-on-Thames had their first chance to do some bargain hunting in the new Salvation Army Trading Company Ltd (SATCoL) charity shop as it opened its doors at 44 High Street on Thursday (07 July).

After an opening attended by representatives of The Salvation Army who blessed the shop, manager Iona Searle and her team of staff and volunteers welcomed a crowd of customers eager to pick up a few bargains from the store.

"We've been very busy getting the shop ready for a while now and the response from local residents has been fantastic," said Iona. "People have been regularly popping by, keen to see what's going on and how they can help. We've also had some very generous donations from locals so we're absolutely thrilled. We hope that now we're open the local residents will enjoy shopping here, as we've got some fabulous bargains on sale at very reasonable prices."

The shop sells quality donated goods including clothes, accessories, bric-a-brac and household goods. With profit from the shop gift-aided to The Salvation Army to help fund its valuable work throughout the UK, the team is confident that shoppers will be tempted by the quality of the goods on offer, knowing that their money is going to a well-loved charity. Homeless shelters, substance misuse centres and family tracing services are just some of the services The Salvation Army delivers.

For more information on SATCoL charity shops visit www.wear2shop.co.uk.

The team look forward to welcoming more customers and volunteers to the new shop. "We hope that this fantastic start continues and local people will continue to support us by shopping, donating and thinking about whether they'd like to become part of our team of volunteers" said Iona.

If you are interested in volunteering at the Walton-on-Thames shop, visit the shop or e-mail volunteer@satradingco.org for further information.