A new charity initiative in Wales has been launched will donate hundreds of thousands of essential goods to 40,000 families in poverty this year.
The Multibank’s Cwtch Mawr project is its third multibank in the Ƶ. The initiative was co-founded by former Prime Minister Gordon Brown and e-commerce giant Amazon. The Multibank’s first project was launched in Fife, Scotland in 2022, followed by a second in Wigan last year. The initiative has now donated more than two million surplus essential items to over 200,000 families in need. By the end of this year the project aims to support more than half a million families from six Multibank sites across the Ƶ.
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Located in Swansea, Cwtch Mawr is being led by Swansea charity Faith in Families and supported by Welsh Government and Swansea Council. Cwtch Mawr will process donations from a dedicated 6,000 sf ft warehouse in Llansamlet. It is launching with a donation of 65,000 nappies, 150,000 toilet rolls, hundreds of duvets from the Textile Services Association, as well as 300,000 surplus essential goods from Amazon. Items will be delivered via the charity’s referral partner networks to families in need across South Wales.
The Multibank initiative is part of Amazon’s broader commitment to support the communities in which it operates. Since establishing its fulfilment centre in Swansea Bay in 2010, it has invested £1.8bn in Wales and created more than 2,000 jobs.
Mr Brown said: “The cost-of-living crisis has for too many families become a real, day-in-day-out struggle to make ends meet because the money simply runs out before the end of each month. We have designed the Multibank initiative to accept returned, surplus or overruns of goods from Ƶ companies and via local charity partners, like Faith in Families, we can get items like nappies, school uniforms, dusters, and duvets, straight into the hands of social workers, teachers, and health practitioners for social prescribing.
" The business partners who have joined our Coalition of Compassion are directly able to alleviate immediate need for warm clothes, hygiene products and essential household items to support those who need them at the time they actually need the help.”
John Boumphrey, Ƶ country manager, Amazon, said: “We are delighted to bring together this coalition of partners to launch Cwtch Mawr, Wales’s first multibank. Our two existing multibanks are having a huge impact across Scotland and Greater Manchester, helping families in poverty while contributing to a more circular economy by putting surplus products to good use. I’m very grateful to the many colleagues from across Amazon who have brought their logistics expertise, passion for innovation, and dedication to helping our local communities, to this project, and who will enable us to support tens of thousands of families across South Wales this year, and beyond.”
First Minister Mark Drakeford said: “The Multibank is a fantastic model, with businesses based locally donating goods which can then be provided free to people who need them, helping to keep money in their pockets. Cwtch Mawr will help people who are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis to access essential goods and support easily in one place. This is an excellent example of partnership working, with the public, private and voluntary sectors coming together. I’m proud Welsh Government is supporting this project and hope to see it expand over the next five years.”
Rob Stewart, leader of Swansea Council, said: “I am very proud that Swansea Council is a founding partner in Cwtch Mawr and I’d like to thank all those involved in working to open this multibank in our city to support the many families and individuals who are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis. This will make a very real difference to many thousands of people in the months and years to come and means there will be support with essentials when they need it most.”
Cherrie Bija, chief executive of Faith in Families, said: “When people come together to support each other we all will have a better life. Cwtch Mawr is a collaboration of different sectors wanting to bring hope and support to those who face some of the most challenging situations in life, right here in our communities. This big Welsh Hug can be transformational for Swansea and South Wales. From gifting children with brand-new football boots so that they can take part in their school team, to maternity packs for new Mums so they can have dignity going into hospital, these things really matter. People are barely surviving right now, children are normalising discomfort and hunger, individuals are facing hopeless situations. Cwtch Mawr will make a difference in people’s lives and for the planet, a real anti-poverty, anti-pollution, engagement solution.”
