Are charity shops helping to stimulate and generate the economy in Midsomer Norton? That's great that another charity shop is taking over an empty shop in the town, but as usually it's the manager who's paid, the other staff are all volunteers and there's no money going into their pockets. Do we have enough volunteers in the town who are willing to work for free?

Hi Carla,

You're right that there are only a couple of paid roles within the stores; here at Barnardo's there is normally a paid full time manager and a paid part time deputy or sales assistant. We also have paid placements for unemployed young people through the Future Jobs Fund, but the government funding for these is ending soon.

We always strive to provide those who want to gain experience with the opportunity to build up their skills through volunteering in our stores. The average age of a Barnardo's retail volunteer is 33, and so those wanting to get a foot on the employment ladder make up a large proportion of our volunteering body; school leavers, students, parents returning to work and unemployed people all benefit from the opportunities we offer.

Although it is quite hard to quantify, the money raised through the work of the charity shops has a very positive economic impact, as the improvements to the lives of the children, young people and families we work with has knock on effects with regards to the use of other services (healthcare, policing, welfare services etc). The nearest Barnardo’s service to you is just down the road in Radstock, a brief summary of which can be found through this link: http://tinyurl.com/6egds3s

So although direct job generation through the stores is quite limited, we hope that we can deliver wider benefits to the community of Midsomer Norton and the surrounding area.

Best wishes,
Nicola