Which Bed Linen and Towels Can I Donate?
If it’s clean, dry and someone could sleep in it, dry off with it or lay a table with it tomorrow, we’ll take it. That covers most of a linen cupboard: sheets, duvet covers, pillowcases, towels and tablecloths. Here is what our free doorstep linen and towel collection takes, the few things we can’t, and why.
Sheets
Flat and fitted, any size.
Covers
Duvet covers and pillowcases.
Towels
Bath, hand and tea towels.
Tablecloths
For everyday or for best.
Welcome in your bags
Bed linen and towels we collect
We take bedding and towels for every room in the house, including:
- Flat sheets
- Fitted sheets
- Duvet covers
- Pillowcases
- Bath towels and bath sheets
- Hand towels
- Tea towels
- Tablecloths
Single, double, king-size or cot-sized, plain or patterned, a full matching set or one odd sheet: it all helps. Bed linen from a spare room you’ve just cleared, or towels you’ve replaced with new ones, are exactly what we’re looking for.
A second life, sometimes a furry one. We’ve even passed bed linen and towels on to Battersea Dogs & Cats Home, to be used as cosy pet bedding.
Towels have their own page, with more on how worn is too worn: can I donate old towels? If you have clothes, books or toys to clear as well, they can go out in the same collection.
Please leave out
Bedding we can’t take, and why
There are only a few, and each has a reason. We only collect things another person can use again. Anything that can’t be passed on costs money to get rid of, and that money should be going to charity instead.
Duvets and pillows
Anything with a filling holds on to dust, sweat and skin over the years, and it can’t be cleaned well enough to pass on second-hand.
Instead: animal shelters are often glad of them. If they’re past that, take them to your local recycling centre.
Blankets and throws
We aren’t able to pass these on, so they can’t go in with your sheets and towels.
Instead: offer them to an animal shelter, or to friends and neighbours.
Sleeping bags
Like duvets, they are filled, so they can’t be passed on second-hand for hygiene reasons.
Instead: an animal shelter, or your local recycling centre.
Mattress protectors
They sit closest to the sleeper and soak up whatever a mattress would, so nobody wants one second-hand.
Instead: your local recycling centre.
Cushion covers
They’re made to fit one particular cushion, so they rarely find a new home, and we can’t take them.
Instead: offer them to friends or family, or put them in a council textile bank.
Curtains
They come in so many lengths, widths and fittings that they seldom suit another home, so we’re not able to take them.
Instead: ask friends and neighbours, or try a local community noticeboard. Worn-out curtains can go in a council textile bank.
Rugs
They’re heavy, they hold dirt and grit deep in the pile, and they can’t be bagged up with your linen.
Instead: your local recycling centre.
Pet bedding
Hair, smells and fleas don’t wash out easily, and they would spoil the clean linen packed around them.
Instead: if it’s still sound, a friend with a pet may want it. If not, it belongs in your general waste.
Wet, torn or badly stained
Nobody can use them again, and one damp towel can turn a whole bag mouldy.
Instead: a council textile bank or your local recycling centre.
The full list of everything we can and can’t collect is on what we collect.
Before you bag up
Is it good enough to donate?
Is it clean?
Put it through the wash first if it needs it.
Is it dry?
All the way through. Thick towels hold damp for longer than you’d think, and damp linen goes mouldy in a tied bag.
Is it in one piece?
No big holes, rips or heavy stains. A little fading is fine.
Would you give it to a friend?
If yes, it’s ready to go.
A good rule of thumb: fold each piece as if you were putting it back in your own linen cupboard. Then pack it into tied bags or boxes a driver can lift, and leave them out by 7am on your collection day. You don’t need to be in.
Unsure about one item? Leave it out. One damp or dirty piece can spoil a whole bag of good bedding.
Worn out?
What about sheets and towels that are worn out?
Please don’t put them in your donation bags, but please don’t put them in the bin either. Council textile banks and household recycling centres take worn-out textiles and send them for recycling. Why that’s better than the bin is on why shouldn’t old sheets and towels go in the bin?
Everything you do send us goes back to our warehouse, where we sort it by hand and pass on what can be used again. Most of it gets a second life, and you can follow its journey on what happens to my bed linen and towels?
Ready to bag up? Our step-by-step guide, how do I donate my bed linen and towels?, covers booking, packing and the day itself.
Ready to donate your linen and towels?
It’s free, you don’t need to be at home, and you choose the charity your donation supports.