All items · Health & beauty
Incontinence, sanitary and hygiene products
Also covers: incontinence pads, continence aids, sanitary towels, sanitary pads, tampons, period products, nappies, unopened toiletries
Can you donate incontinence, sanitary and hygiene products to a UK charity shop? It depends.
The short answer
It depends
Of the 153 UK charities we track, 3 say no and 1 may accept in some cases. 1 of those is a category-wide rule rather than a direct mention.
Evidence last verified
Why shops may refuse it
Some charity shops refuse hygiene products even when sealed because they are not set up to resell or distribute them.
What to do instead
Local care homes, food banks, hygiene banks, refuges and homelessness services may accept unopened, in-date packs — check their current wanted list.
Charity by charity
4 mentions-
Can't accept
The policy separately also lists sanitary items or nappies.
Their wording
“Incontinence pads/pants”
-
Can't accept
Nightingale House Hospice category-wide rule
Stated as a whole item type they don't accept.
Their wording
“Health & personal care items”
-
Can't accept
Listed under 'Medication & Hygiene Products'; hygiene products refused even if unopened/unused.
Their wording
“Any leftover medications or hygiene products. Even if unopened or unused. You can donate them to the Hygiene Bank instead.”
-
Check first
Accepted only if brand new, sealed in original packaging, unopened/unused and within the expiry date; from the 'Sanitary Products' entry.
Their wording
“However, please ensure that all items are in saleable condition. ✅ Brand new and sealed in original packaging ✅ Unopen and unused ✅ Within expiry date”
Not mentioned in 149 charities' guidance
Absence from a charity's list doesn't mean they accept it — it just isn't singled out. Ask your local shop.
- Accord Hospice
- Acorns Children's Hospice
- Age UK
- Ardgowan Hospice
- Ashgate Hospicecare
- Ayrshire Hospice
- Barnardo's
- Barnsley Hospice
- Blythe House Hospice
- Bolton Hospice
- British Heart Foundation
- British Red Cross
- Butterfly Hospice Trust
- Butterwick Hospice
- Cancer Research UK
- Children's Hospice South West
- Children's Hospices Across Scotland (CHAS)
- Claire House Children's Hospice
- Cransley Hospice Trust
- Crisis
- DEBRA
- Demelza Hospice Care for Children
- Derian House Children's Hospice
- Dogs Trust
- Dorothy House
- Douglas Macmillan Hospice
- Dr Kershaw's Hospice
- East Lancashire Hospice
- Eden Valley Hospice and Jigsaw, Cumbria's Children's Hospice
- Ellenor
- Emmaus
- FARA Charity Shops
- Farleigh Hospice
- Florence Nightingale Hospice Charity
- Forget Me Not Children's Hospice
- Garden House Hospice Care
- Great Oaks Hospice
- Great Western Air Ambulance Charity
- Greenwich & Bexley Community Hospice
- Heart of Kent Hospice
- Helen & Douglas House
- Highland Hospice
- Hope House & Ty Gobaith Children's Hospices
- Hospice at Home Carlisle and North Lakeland
- Hospice in the Weald
- Hospice Isle of Man
- Hospice of the Good Shepherd
- Hospice of the Valleys
- Jersey Hospice Care
- Julia's House
- Katharine House Hospice (Stafford)
- Katharine House Hospice, Banbury
- Keech Hospice Care
- KEMP Hospice
- Lewis-Manning Hospice Care
- Lindsey Lodge Hospice
- Longfield Community Hospice
- LOROS Hospice
- Marie Curie
- Martin House Children's Hospice
- Mountbatten Isle of Wight
- Moya Cole Hospice
- Naomi House & Jack's Place
- North Devon Hospice
- North London Hospice
- Nottinghamshire Hospice
- Octavia Foundation
- Overgate Hospice
- Oxfam
- PDSA
- Pendleside Hospice
- Phyllis Tuckwell
- Pilgrims Hospices
- Primrose Hospice
- Princess Alice Hospice
- Prospect Hospice
- Queenscourt Hospice
- Rainbows Hospice for Children and Young People
- Rennie Grove Peace Hospice Care
- Rotherham Hospice
- Rowans Hospice
- Royal Trinity Hospice (London)
- Saint Francis Hospice
- Salvation Army (SATCoL)
- Samaritans
- Save the Children
- Scope
- Sense Scotland
- Severn Hospice
- Shaw Trust
- Shelter
- Shooting Star Children's Hospices
- Southern Hospice Group
- Springhill Hospice
- St Andrew's Hospice (Lanarkshire)
- St Barnabas Hospice (Lincolnshire)
- St Catherine's Hospice (Crawley)
- St Catherine's Hospice (Lancashire)
- St Christopher's Hospice
- St Clare Hospice
- St Columba's Hospice
- St Cuthbert's Hospice
- St David's Hospice Care
- St Giles Hospice
- St Helena Hospice
- St John's Hospice (Lancaster, Morecambe, Kendal & Garstang)
- St John's Hospice (London)
- St Luke's Cheshire Hospice
- St Luke's Hospice (Harrow & Brent)
- St Luke's Hospice Basildon & Thurrock
- St Luke's Hospice Plymouth
- St Luke's Hospice, Sheffield
- St Margaret's Hospice Care (Somerset)
- St Mary's Hospice
- St Michael's Hospice (North Hampshire)
- St Nicholas Hospice Care
- St Oswald's Hospice
- St Peter & St James Hospice
- St Peter's Hospice
- St Raphael's Hospice
- St Richard's Hospice
- St Vincent de Paul Society (SVP)
- St Vincent's Hospice
- St Wilfrid's Hospice
- Strathcarron Hospice
- Sue Ryder
- Thames Hospice
- The Children's Trust
- The Kirkwood
- The Myton Hospices
- The Prince and Princess of Wales Hospice
- The Prince of Wales Hospice
- The Shakespeare Hospice
- Traid
- Treetops Hospice Trust
- Trinity Hospice (Blackpool)
- Tynedale Hospice at Home
- Wakefield Hospice
- Wales Air Ambulance
- Weldmar Hospicecare
- Wigan and Leigh Hospice
- Willen Hospice
- Willow Burn Hospice
- Willow Wood Hospice
- Willowbrook Hospice
- Wirral Hospice St John's
- Woking & Sam Beare Hospices
- Woodgreen Pets Charity
- YMCA (England & Wales)