THE British Red Cross is calling on people across North East to donate old and unwanted shirts to help fund its work with people in crisis in the UK and around the world.

The call comes as the charity’s Shirt Swap campaign with TM Lewin enters its final week.

The initiative, fronted by Gary Lineker, calls on people to donate their unwanted shirts to help support the charity’s vital work, following an unprecedented year of disasters in the UK. Shirts will be re-sold in British Red Cross shops, helping raise money to support people in crisis in the UK and overseas.

The public can get behind the work of the British Red Cross – which responded to more than a thousand emergencies in the UK alone last year – by donating their unwanted shirts to a British Red Cross or TM Lewin shop. Donors will receive a TM Lewin voucher in exchange.

Money raised from the campaign will go towards the work of the British Red Cross, including in the UK where staff and volunteers help with everything from providing psychosocial support and first aid, and working hand in hand with the emergency services to assist people when tragedy strikes.

Former England striker turned TV presenter Gary Lineker is backing the campaign, and has donated some of his shirts to the appeal.

He said: “I’m just as bad as anyone at getting rid of my stuff and with so many people owning clothes they no longer wear, this is the perfect opportunity to have a clear out and do some good in the process.

“Rather than chucking your unwanted shirts in the bin – why not head down to a British Red Cross or TM Lewin shop and donate them to help fund the sterling work the charity does across the UK and all over the world?

“It doesn’t matter what kind of shirt it is and it doesn’t have to be from TM Lewin. Big, small, T-shirts, smart, scruffy and football shirts; each of these donations will help communities to recover and rebuild in the wake of an emergency. Even better – you can get some new shirts in exchange.”

Paul Thompson, director of retail at British Red Cross, said: “We need clothing donations now more than ever. Last year saw one of the largest responses in the history of the British Red Cross – with hundreds of volunteers and staff mobilising to assist people affected by tragedies across the UK. Red Cross shops are a vital source of funds to continue supporting this work."

Geoff Quinn, at TM Lewin, said: "We will be doing everything we can to ensure our customers get behind the campaign and donate as many old shirts as possible to this great cause."

To learn more about how to donate your unwanted shirts to the Shirt Swap campaign, visit www.tmlewin.co.uk/shirtswap