Donor Friday – Life Buoy Hand Hygiene Kits

During the coronavirus pandemic, the need to keep people clean, safe and well has never been greater. Working with partners like Unilever has enabled us to keep getting the most essential products to the communities who need them across the UK. As a single point of contact for companies and manufacturers, we make donating products easy, and ensure vital goods get into the hands of those who need them.

So, when Lifebuoy launched in the UK and Ireland earlier this month, they asked us to help. Lifebuoy are on a mission to help the nation establish better and more frequent hygiene habits as we return to schools and workplaces across the country, because helping people wash and sanitise their hands effectively at the right times is the simplest and most effective way to protect their health.

Lifebuoy and In Kind Direct are working together to help educate families and increase access to effective hand hygiene by distributing 30,000 Hand Hygiene Kits. The kits contain a 50ml hand sanitiser gel as well as a variety of practical tips and useful tools, including a step-by-step bathroom poster guiding families through effective handwashing and sanitising motions; a colouring-in poster to teach children the key moments when they need to clean their hands; stickers to put around the house to remind you to wash or sanitise your hands.

The kits will be distributed in September as part of our Back to Basics campaign - providing life’s essentials for school, work and home. We have listened to our network of thousands of charities, community groups and schools, as they begin to reopen and deliver face-to-face services and classes. We know that many families are now managing tighter budgets and facing financial uncertainty. Initiatives like this one will help people to live, learn and work safely.

The Hand Hygiene Kit contents have been approved by the Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH) and Global Handwashing Partnership and are intended to reach school children and families. With Unilever UK & Ireland being a longstanding partner of In Kind Direct, they know and understand how our network of charity partners plays a crucial role in providing vital support to people in need.

Duncan Stephenson, Deputy Chief Executive at the RSPH explains: "Hands are one of the riskiest sites and surfaces for infection transmission, so practising good hand hygiene is an incredibly effective way to reduce the spread of infection. As schools begin to go back, we share parents’ concerns that children should also be encouraged to practise good hand hygiene – yet it is clear they are not sure how.”

There are a limited number of kits available, so charities are urged to check the catalogue regularly for when they become available. If you miss out on receiving a kit, you can still access practical tips and tools, as well as ‘how-to’ videos for practising good hand hygiene online at www.lifebuoy.co.uk.