Except for last year when COVID interrupted plans, for the last 16 years, a container lorry has taken items donated by people in Birmingham from here to Malawi. This year the lorry is to be loaded on Saturday 12 June. The address for loading and instructions for accessing the site is below.
What to send
People in Malawi value many items being sent, including children`s clothing and shoes (and sometimes adult clothing and shoes also), any books written in English, stationery, basic first aid, materials, sewing machines, footballs and simple children`s games/toys, lap tops and sturdy bicycles. To avoid attracting customs` duties, however, most of these items should be second hand.
Special items have also been requested this year due to COVID. In particular, church hospitals and parishioners are asking for masks, surgical face masks, face particulator (N95) masks, heavy duty gloves and aprons, goggles, disposable gowns, face shields and gumboots. If, on this year`s container lorry, we could at least send material from which Malawians can make basic masks, that would be great. If anyone has access to some of this more specialist PPE, that would be even better. It would also be wonderful if we could send basic bed linen and infra-red thermometers and batteries, as requested.
Location of loading
At Rye Farm, Wishaw, Sutton Coldfield West Mids. B76 9QA, located through a bridge over which passes the Toll Road,
Most people will access from J9 of the M42 known to some as the Dunton Roundabout. Taking the A446 (N’bound) towards Lichfield for about 300 yards to the bottom of the "hill" there is a sign to a cafe and Wishaw. Take the sliproad on the left signposted to Wishaw and pass under a bridge, the Farm is the first turning on the right. The A446 at this point is a dual carriageway narrowing to a single lane so anyone arriving from the Tamworth or Lichfield direction will need travel on to the Dunton roundabout and then turn back on themselves before being able to turn onto the sliproad.
Cost of sending the lorry
To send the lorry, the cost to Birmingham Diocese will work out at approximately £6 per cubic foot. Any contributions towards this cost from those sending items or from any others will be gratefully appreciated. If individuals wish not only to donate but also to gift aid their donation, better still! People will be able to make contributions on 12 June itself (and also to sign gift aid forms) but can also make them by emailing the Finance team.
Booking
To avoid running out of space on the lorry we do ask people who wish to use the container to contact Denese Ryan and to book their required cubic feet of space by 20 May. When space is booked, Denese will give out instructions for 12 June including labels, forms, codes and, eventually, timings.
People may choose to send items to particular people, places or organisations in Malawi - in which case they will need to specify their chosen recipients to Denese. Alternatively, if people do not have any particular recipients in mind, they should inform Denese and she and the Task Group will then consider suitable recipients.
The items on the container lorry bring great joy to our brothers and sisters in Malawi every year. Please do consider contributing! If you have any questions the Revd Paul Bracher will be happy to assist
Thank you from
The Malawi Task Group