Green Uniform and Baby Bank (GUBB)

Hello there!

We are the Green Uniform and Baby Bank, but you can call us GUBB. We are a non-profit, volunteer led organisation, based in Winsford, who help people with the living costs associated with their young families. Emma Ball is our Founder and Director, and is supported by co-Directors Vanessa Tobin and Michelle Hawthorne, along with our team of volunteers.

We started life over 5 years ago in a cupboard in a Dinner Lady’s home in Winsford. Our Emma, as a mother to four, realised that when her growing children needed the next size school uniform, there was nowhere to readily exchange second-hand items to keep financial and environmental costs low and that’s how the Winsford Uniform Exchange was born. It soon became clear that pre-school needs were also creating financial pressures for families. So, three years later, when the opportunity to continue the ‘Pass It On Baby Bank’ community project was presented to Emma, she couldn’t say no.

Together, the GUBB aim to help young families to save money whilst reducing waste and inequality to improve their futures. We do this largely by selling uniform and baby items generously donated by the community. All funds, after paying our running costs, are put back into mid-Cheshire communities through local events and initiatives. We offer good quality, used, logo and generic primary and secondary uniform items.

At GUBB, a full uniform costs less than £25.00, which is a huge and important saving for families at a time when money is expected to go further. We also offer pre-loved baby equipment, all in good condition.

It is estimated that families can expect to pay over £9,000 in a baby’s first year and so we provide families with an opportunity to save money here too. Our baby items are typically priced between 10p for baby clothing to £60.00 for a pram.

GUBB is more than a way of diverting items away from landfill. Our community, who donate and shop with us, are not only recycling used goods into our Community Shop but enable us to provide more support to people who really need it.

Just imagine for a moment you are 19, and pregnant for the first time.

You and your young partner have no family networks to support you. It will take 6 weeks for your Universal Credit to come through, and there is so much to buy and sort. You feel lost and don’t have a clue where to start. This was the situation of a young girl that came into us.

Our volunteers, most of whom are mum’s themselves, rallied around. We agreed for her and her partner to come in each week to talk through the items they would need. We were able to get all the essentials for the baby’s arrival and agreed they only needed to pay a small contribution, £20.00, for everything.

For this young person, it provided a safe place to access support, and gave them the relief of knowing that they would have everything that was needed at an extremely sensitive time, but without putting financial pressure on an already very stretched budget.

Location and opening times
Our Community Shop is open to everyone, you do not need a referral. You can find us on the First Floor of the Community Hub, High Street, CW7 2AS.

We are open every Tuesday 9.30am until 12.00 noon, and Thursday 5.00pm to 7.00pm every week, and the first Saturday of the month.

If you want to find out more or have any questions, you can contact us via our Webpage

https://greenuniformandbabybankltd.org/, on Facebook, call us on 07835851908 or email us at info@greenuniformandbabybankltd.org.

If you prefer in person, you can pop into our Community Shop during our opening hours, and we are always happy to have a chat!