It’s finally printed and ready to buy! An ideal Christmas or New Year present!

What better way to brighten up your kitchen wall or desk than 12 beautiful photos from the KitAid mile of smiles! A lovely selection of team kits and views from some of the many projects we have supported in 2020.

You will also be helping KitAid continue our work, as each sale results in us receiving £4-50. This will help towards courier and storage costs which are our main expenditure. Like all charities, 2020 has been a really tough year and we are short of funds. Despite this, we have still managed to send out 65,000 items of kit this year and 700,000 items since we first started in 1998.

Please use the following link to buy your calendar(s) https://www.fluidic.co.uk/p/31112/kitaid-calendar

In line with the new lockdown regulations, KitAid will be suspending all kit collection activities until further notice.

If you are able to post your donation, we would recommend using “Parcels2Go”, it can be sent to the following address

KitAid, Affinity Water Head Office, Tamblin Way, Hatfield, Herts, AL10 9EZ.

For bigger donations, please hold on to the kit until the restrictions are relaxed and then let us know by email.

Thank you for your understanding and for your ongoing support. Please say safe.

KitAid

In view of the increase in Covid infections across the UK, we have decided to suspend all kit collections made by our regional helpers in any area registered as Tier 3.

Collections will continue in those areas registered as Tiers 1 and 2, but they must follow with full safety considerations.

If you live in an area registered as Tier 3, please either hold on to your kit until the situation improves or send the kit by post or by Parcels2Go to the Affintiy Water Head Office address in Hatfield.

We thank you for your consideration and support during this difficult pandemic period.

After a three month break and with the easing of “lockdown” across the country, KitAid has decided to re-start kit collections. We have contacted all of our volunteer Regional Co-ordinators and they are all happy to receive and collect kit donations, as long as safe practices are followed. This is great news.

We would therefore ask that when donating kit

• Government guidelines are followed
• A safe distance is maintained
• Gloves and a face mask are worn
• Kit is washed (if possible)

These are intended to protect our volunteers and you, as we wish to act responsibly to everyone.

Thank you for your support.

We are delighted to launch our new Annual Review for 2019 which is available to read via the following link.

The Annual Review is a labour of love as all of the stories have to be researched, written and proof read before it can be sent to our designer. Carole Parsons, our designer is a long term supporter of KitAid and although she has now retired, she still finds time to do our work free of charge. We are incredibly grateful to her and she does a fantastic job in bringing pages of words to life.

Please share the document as we are keen that as many people as possible get a chance to read the stories.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to KitAid’s success in 2019 and we hope you enjoy reading the Annual Review.

In view of the current situation KitAid has taken the decision to suspend kit collections by our Regional Co-ordinators until further notice.

If you have kit to donate that cannot be posted we would be extremely grateful if you could hold on to it until we are in a position to receive donations again.

We are extremely grateful for your support and wish you well in this difficult time.

Please follow our updates on @kitaid Twitter and via KitAid Charity on Facebook.

Thank you for your understanding and stay safe.

KitAid

Our storeroom facility at Affinity Water’s Head Office in HATFIELD is temporarily FULL.

We can accept postal packages but NOT boxes by courier delivery until after 6 April. In the meantime, we can store donations at our container in Hemel Hempstead, but this is on an unmanned site, so an appointment on a Friday or Monday will have to be made ahead of the delivery. If this is the case please email Kitaidcharity@gmail.com so that arrangements can be made.

Many thanks for your patience until 6 April 2020.

KitAid Founder, Derrick Williams MBE and Trustee, Janet Neville, met up with our new Ambassador, Mary HD and her publicist Lorraine Worsley Carter MBE DL in Manchester recently.

It was an excellent meeting with lots of discussion about how Mary HD can promote KitAid to her followers from the music and fashion world. Lorraine, who runs the Countess Publicist agency is representing Mary but has a strong interest in our work and is happy to support KitAid as well.

For more information about Mary HD you can find her on all social media sites and there is also a profile on our website. We are really pleased to be working with Maryand we look forward to reaching out to an audience who would not otherwise know about KitAid.

A perfect partnership and one which will flourish over the coming years.

The new Thank You certificates are now back from our printers and ready to hand out to everyone who supports KitAid in 2020.

They look great and even better when framed and hanging with pride on a clubhouse or school wall. To become a member of this exclusive club simply donate a decent amount of kit or go that extra mile to support our work.

We would like to thank our designer, Carole Parsons, for her work, but also for taking on the job while on holiday in New Zealand.

To any Regional Helpers who have not yet received your batch of certificates in the post, please let us know.

It was with great sadness that we recently learned of the passing of 15 year old Tikhale Nalolo, a FOMO netball player, and of Karen Childs, a KitAid supporter.

We sponsored the trophies for a special memorial tournament organised by FOMO Committee members in honour of Tikhale. Karen was also remembered at the event, which was fitting as she loved Africa.

Congratulations to Nsuwazi FC, who won the football tournament, and to the brilliant FOMO Sisters who won the netball final. All proceeds from the event will be donated to Tikhale’s family next Monday (3rd February).