June 2026 News
Over the summer the newsletter has been on hiatus, largely because of competition from other pressing events. Over the next couple of weeks we will catch up on everything that has been going on in a series of smaller updates rather than one monster newsletter.
Oasis Academy
Through June as the end of the school year approached, the preparations for the closure of the Oasis Academy were stepping up. Visitors noticed the building slowly emptying out. The Scrubbery helped in any way we could: sorting out cupboards, including costumes and art supplies: counting Hi- Vis vests and packing up articles for re-allocation. This was the harbinger of the much more intense actual closure process in July and August, of which more later.
In between these activities there was time to fit in a Mending Workshop, run by Rosie, for Oasis Academy and Putney High pupils. A video on global textile waste was shown and we talked to them about why we all need to be thoughtful about what clothes we purchase in the first instance. Rosie and the Scrubbery team then taught them how to sew on different buttons for different purposes, how to weave a mend and how to put up a hem and mend a cuff. We talked about basic mends and visible mending to make a statement. The workshop was so popular Putney High have asked if we will run another one this term.
Deliveries
Following the May newsletter, which was mainly about our visitors from Ukraine, this one demonstrates the incredible amount of humanitarian aid and equipment that is still needed in Ukraine and that we are engaged in collecting and dispatching.
On June 2nd, Pick Ups 4 Peace took a very practical delivery to Ukraine including:
circular saws, chop saws, tarpaulins, battery chargers, petrol cans, socket sets, hand tools, gas camping stoves, tyres and 662 trench candles. Very well done that team!
On June 16th Medical Lifelines Ukraine took a medical delivery including:
Continence pads, pain relief, medical tape, first aid kits, catheter bags, slings, stoma bags, a glucose monitor, urine drainage packs, and nasal cannulas.
Thanks to Rosies’ persistent lobbying and the generosity of NHS trusts, obsolete uniform stock from NHS hospitals is now feeding into Ukraine for use in stabilisation points, field hospitals, military and civil hospitals. We sent scrubs, tunics and trousers.
The final items were small beautifully knitted blankets and quilts. On June 26th Medical Lifelines UK delivered large quantities of scrub sets and hospital tunics and trousers for men and women.
Special thanks are due to the work of Artis, a Facilities Support Officer for London North West University Heathcare NHS Trust and her colleague Mehjoub. Their relationship with The Scrubbery began during the pandemic when we sent our scrubs to the Health Trust. Artis and Mehjoub are now collecting scrubs for us!
This donation was triaged at the Scrubbery, sorted into sizes, checked for zips and buttons, mended if necessary and then packaged up. This meant packing the uniforms into a double wrapping of clear plastic bags with a descriptive note slipped in between the layers.
When they were ready to go, Rosie approached hospitals in Ukraine to see who needed them. Embrace Me in Ascot responded and Buzz, one of their volunteers offered to collect them from Putney. Rosie then received news that each bag had to be weighed as customs are trying to cut down on illegal activity. Without an industrial weighing machine, Rosie had to bring in her bathroom scales over the weekend. She and her New Zealand friend, Jeff (hero), had to step on and off the scales 45 times each holding a bag weighing @10-15 kg in a HEATWAVE. By the end, the people weighed 200g less! All 45 bags were squeezed into Buzz’s car.
On June 30th Buzz returned and took wheelchairs, crutches, zimmer frames, food, duvets, knitted blankets, prem baby knits, children’s jumpers and cardigans, quilts, towels, blankets, nappies, trench candles, camo net, tools and Ibuprofen. Also the beautiful Sunday best dresses which were made from offcuts of material in the Scrubbery. Luckily none of this shipment needed weighing!
An apology:
In the April Newsletter, I referred to the generosity of the Bedfordshire Hospital NHS Trust in sending us over 100 reuseable uniforms for shipment to Ukraine. This generous donation was thanks to their Sustainability and Social Impact Officer and Green Champion Co-Ordinator, Jasmine, not Justine as I previously wrote. I apologise for the error.
