High Wycombe Central Aid Society

Latest News: Bid on Ebay!

See our new Ebay outlet for surplus / one-off items of furniture and bid for items online.  For a list of items see the 'Furniture Project Ebay Outlet' section on the right hand column, or click here. For more details on how it works, see this news item.

How does the Furniture Project Warehouse work?

If you are a member of the public, you are welcome to visit our warehouse and buy any non-restricted items at the marked (undiscounted) price.

If you are on most recognised means-tested state benefit (we accept almost all except Child Tax Credit) by filling in a simple registration form (click link to download) you can become one of our registered clients. You should bring with you:

1. Something with your current name and address on it (such as a utility bill or official correspondence)
2. Proof of your entitlement to a mean-tested benefit (such as a recent statement or for Income Support a current bank statement showing the payment reference line from the DWP)

Registration usually expires after 1 year, gives you an approximate 25% discount on all standard prices, and allows you to buy restricted classes of items (currently beds and wardrobes). We do impose "fair usage" restrictions on all registered clients as part of our conditions when you apply (which currently limits customers to the equivalent of 2 double beds, 4 single beds and 2 wardrobes per year).

On registering, you'll be given a discount card, the back of which looks like this:

You must bring this discount card with you if you want to buy items at the discounted price / purchase restricted items. Please note that we reserve the right to charge £1 for printing replacement cards to prevent abuse.  The front of the card has our contact details and opening times on for easy reference.

Client Registration Form download (PDF Format).

See our warehouse page for location and opening times. (Also check our Current Status page.)

Choosing Items

All the stock we have is on display fully priced in the warehouse on a first-come-first-serve basis. If there is something you would like to buy you simply speak to a member of staff on the reception desk and they will be happy to help you. Please note: we no longer operate the previous system of holding items for a few days with a deposit. All items nust be paid for in full to secure them.

We accept cash as payment. Due to the phasing out of most UK bank cheque guarantee schemes we only accept cheques made payable to 'High Wycombe Central Aid Society' on the basis that no goods are removed before payment has cleared our bank.

We are now also able to take a range of chip-and-pin credit and debit cards in the warehouse (subject to some surcharges for credit cards).  We have new stock coming into the warehouse three days a week, but please bear in mind we cannot control what we get because it is all donated by members of the public. You are advised to pop in at regular intervals to see what we do have in stock.


Delivery

You are welcome to collect purchased items from the warehouse. We also offer a delivery service which costs just £10. Please ask a member of staff about delivery areas and times. Our delivery team will be happy to deliver to just inside your property, but are not usually able to position furniture within the home or go upstairs unless specifically agreed in advance with warehouse staff.  Our full delivery conditions are set out in a Delivery Agreement which you may be asked to sign when arranging a delivery. Where we think items are particularly large or heavy we will make you aware of this and expect you to have assessed all access points to your property to ensure they fit - we cannot accept returns of these items on the basis that they will not fit!

Appliances (Cookers, Fridges etc)

Unfortunately, we are currently very limited as to what we can do in terms of appliances. We have no gas or water in the warehouse, so we cannot test gas cookers or washing machines. We are able to collect a small number of electric cookers and fridges/fridge freezers but due to the shortage of supply and the overheads in testing and disposal they are almost always allocated to priority Central Aid Grant Cases. If you would like to enquire about obtaining a cooker or fridge please contact our office and they can discuss it with you and allocate you a place on our waiting list.

Please do not assume that you can simply turn up and buy cooker or fridge freezer from us.

Central Aid Society Grants

The Society also operates a scheme of small grants to those living in the High Wycombe area who are in particular need. If you qualify this may enable you to obtain essential items of furniture for free up to the value of the grant. Most grant cases are referred to us by Social Services, agencies, charities and voluntary organisations. Each case is assessed on its own merits by our trustees. Please contact our office for more details.