We are delighted to share exciting news about the continued growth of Willen Hospice’s retail offering. Our charity shops play a vital role in funding the compassionate care we provide across Milton Keynes and the surrounding areas — including our In-patient unit and Willen at Home services. With every donation, purchase, and volunteer hour, our community helps us continue to be there for those who need us most.
New shops, new look, same purpose
We are proud to be introducing several new shops to our retail family in Milton Keynes, along with refreshed branding designed to create an even more welcoming shopping experience. The new branding creates a contemporary feel, fit for the future that will attract even more customers to help us increase the income we need to further support the work of the hospice.
These new stores will offer:
- Great quality, donated, pre-loved items including clothing, homeware, and more!
- A sustainable shopping alternative that helps reduce waste.
- Warm, accessible, community-focused environments where everyone is welcome to shop, donate, and be part of our volunteering team.
With every item donated, every purchase made and every hour spent volunteering in our shops directly supports our specialist end-of-life and palliative care services.
More than just shops
Our retail expansion brings broader benefits to the local community:
- Local Employment: creating job opportunities across the area.
- Volunteering Roles: there are lots of roles available that support the day-to-day running of our shops. Could spare a morning or an afternoon a week?
- Sustainable Living: making reuse and recycling an easy everyday choice.
FAQ
- Where are the locations of these new shops?
The first to open is a new, bigger shop in Stony Stratford, along the high-street and will be located much nearer to our lovely little bookshop. This opened on Friday 7 November. We are then in the planning stages for a shop in Brooklands, which will be located at 373 Fenstreet, in Oxley Park, a new Willen Hospice shop which will replace the shop where Banardos was previously located. We are also planning to open a Clearance Outlet shop in Stacey Bushes at 24 Erica Road.
Our existing Stony Shop is being transformed in to a Christmas pop up shop, which will be open from Friday 14 November. This shop will eventually close, as our lease is nearly up, and will be replaced by our new shop.
Please follow our Willen Hospice shops pages on Facebook and Instagram to keep up to date with progress and opening dates.
- Do you need volunteers?
Yes – we would love your help. Just a few hours a week can make a meaningful difference to a local cause and local people. We’re on the search for friendly, enthusiastic volunteers to support with retail tasks. These will be things like visual merchandising, sorting stock, and serving customers, for example.
Sign up here: Volunteer in Our Shops | Willen Hospice Charity Shops
- Do you need donations?
Yes, we always appreciate good-quality clothing and homewares donations. If you’re not sure what we can accept, please contact your local shop, or visit our website for more information.
Also, did you know you can drop off donations to our donation centre at Kiln Farm? This is located just behind our Kiln Farm Shop. It’s open 7 days a week and makes it much easier for you to donate more items, as we have a lot more space to store them.
If you have any queries about donations, please call the team at the donation centre on 01908 578250. Just to note, we will only be able to accept donations at these new stores once we have opened. Our plan is to utilise items stored at our warehouse to be able to fill the shops initially, but then hope local communities will drop off donations to help keep our shelves stocked.
Ways to donate: Donate to Our Shops | Support Willen Hospice Charity Shops
Thank you to everyone who donates, shops, and volunteers. Together, we are helping ensure that people in our community receive the compassionate care they need — today and in the future.
