Press Release: Official opening of new Little Village baby bank in Hounslow 

Tuesday 19 July 2022 – for immediate release 

Baby bank charity, Little Village, is set to open a new location in the Treaty Shopping Centre in Hounslow with support from owners, BYM Capital.  

The new baby bank, which is in the former Debenhams department store, will be officially opened at an event on Thursday 21st July from 17:00-19:00 sponsored by BYM Capital. Local stakeholders and organisations in the area will be invited to look around the baby bank and hear all about its work.  

Real Estate investor and developer, BYM Capital, as part of its long-term support to the charity, has provided Little Village the space within the shopping centre and has commissioned a short film to showcase Little Village’s important work. 

Little Village supports families with babies and children under the age of five living in poverty across London. The charity runs a baby bank network, collecting, sorting and passing on pre-loved clothes and equipment. It has seen a huge increase in demand since the pandemic hit in 2020 and expects to help over 7,000 children this year as a result of cost of living increases.  

Little Village runs a network of baby banks across London in areas including Wandsworth, Camden, Brent, Southwark, Hackney and Roehampton. BYM Capital has supported the charity with donations and space at other London locations since 2020.  

The Hounslow baby bank will be the charity’s largest hub and will help Hounslow families to access the items they need for their babies and young children. It will also accommodate donations from individuals and businesses and support smaller Little Village hubs across London. 

Sophie Livingstone MBE, CEO of Little Village said: 

“It’s heartening to know that we will be able to help families across Hounslow in the coming months, but it’s also sad that services like ours are needed. Child poverty rates are very high in the area and rises to the cost of living are already having a detrimental impact on the families we support.  

“We now need lots of support from the local community if we are to continue to meet the demand for our work. We’re on the lookout for lots of volunteers, as well as donations of clothing and items for babies and under-fives.  

“It will be wonderful to officially open Little Village Hounslow and we can’t wait to show everyone round. We are extremely grateful to BYM Capital who have generously lent us this space.” 

Maayan Amitai, Head of Communications and Operations from BYM Capital said:  

“We are committed to working within all of the communities in which we operate to help build support and improve networks. As such, we are pleased we could find such a prominent home for Little Village within the Treaty Centre to help them reach families in Hounslow. We know what a vital lifeline Little Village can be for some having worked with them across other London locations. Ensuring charities like this can reach communities directly is central to BYM Capital’s ethos.” 

It is thought that around 41 per cent of children in Hounslow live in poverty, which is above the London child poverty rate of 37 per cent. Little Village has supported 656 under-5s across west London since the beginning of 2020. 

For further information about Little Village, including how to volunteer or donate items or money, please visit the Little Village website. 

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