An estimated £190,000 has been generated for the British Heart Foundation (BHF) thanks to the generosity of students and members of the local community who have got behind this year’s ‘Pack for Good’ campaign.

The BHF initiative, spearheaded by the Student Community Partnership (SCP) – a joint venture between the University of Bath, Bath Spa University and Bath & North East Somerset Council – is designed to encourage students to part with unwanted items as they prepare to leave student accommodation and to cut down on waste.

Building on success from previous years, almost 14,000 bags were donated from 1 April – 30 September this year. Items ranged from books, to clothes and DVDs.

Helping to fund life-saving research

These are now being processed by partners at local BHF stores and all money raised from the sales will go towards funding life-saving research into all heart and circulatory diseases and their risk factors.

Kalyn Mallard, Community Liaison co-ordinator from the Student Community Partnership explained: “We’re delighted with the success of this year’s ‘Pack for Good’ campaign in Bath. Our record-breaking year shows just what can be achieved through a collective effort to increase donations.”

Chair of the Student Community Partnership and Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Learning & Teaching) at the University of Bath, Professor Peter Lambert, added: “This is a fantastic achievement by Bath students and local residents on behalf of the British Heart Foundation. My thanks to everyone who donated and all those involved in this year’s campaign. We look forward to working together again in 2019.”

Vice-Chancellor of Bath Spa University, Professor Sue Rigby, said: “We are thrilled to have helped raise so much money for such a worthy cause – the British Heart Foundation do incredible work, and the ‘Pack for Good’ initiative has proved a really simple, yet successful way to assist their fundraising.”

Thank you on behalf of the BHF

University Account Executive for the BHF, Ed Lloyd explained: “I want to thank all the students and members of the local community in Bath who have helped make this year’s ‘Pack for good’ campaign such a huge success – we really could not have done it without your generosity. All money raised from the sales of your donations will help the BHF in their mission of beating heartbreak forever.”

Around 7 million people live with heart and circulatory disease in the UK, and the conditions are responsible for more than one in four deaths each year. The British Heart Foundation is investing £100 million each year into new life saving research.