Carousel programme
Our Carousel Programme distributes free clothes and supplies for families and children up to 12 months.
Through our partnered agencies these packs are delivered to families on a low income, refugees, asylum seekers and families in crisis. By providing these essential items we are helping to meet the basic needs of the families we work with, ensuring that all our referred children have adequate clothing and equipment.
Made entirely from your donations, we make a variety of different focused packs such as: a starter packs full of baby clothing and essentials; nappy packs with towels and toiletries; literacy packs with books and toys. Our maternity packs include clothing, creams and essentials for birth and after care.
One of our packs being made up for a local family.
An example of our partnership work
One of our partners is Govan HELP who we work on a weekly basis. Their Volunteer Coordinator Annie Achurch said:
“Govan HELP have been working in partnership with Merry-go-round since July 2020. This service has been crucial to the families we support, especially during the challenging times of Covid-19. To date we have received 113 baby bundles of clothes, nappies, toys, and books. Families can pick up the baby bundles from 'The Govan Pantry' when they do their weekly food shop, which makes the process more convenient and less harrowing for parents.”
and from a parent receiving the pack:
“Please pass on our thanks and appreciation to Merry-go-round. Money has been tight this year. I have been furloughed and my partner has lost his job. The baby bundles have been a great help financially and one thing less for me to worry about with everything else going on.”
We are currently registered with over 150 agencies across Glasgow including local health visitors, charities and social enterprises. Since 2016 we have given out over 5000 packs to families in need, currently averaging at 72 packs a month. Our partners can access free goods for families that they work with through our online referral system.
If you are a agency, charity or local health practitioner that could benefit from receiving our free packs for your network you can become a registered partner.
If you are experiencing problems opening the online form, please email us at community@merrygoroundglasgow.co.uk to make a referral.