Rushden slimmers' clothes swap helps raise money for the homeless

Slimmers have been helping each other by swapping their clothes as they lose weight while also raising money.

The clothes swap idea came from Jo Barrett, who attends the Rushden Slimming World group.

Jo joined the Wednesday night group with Leanne Onderka earlier this year and has lost 4.5 stones, eating foods like cheesy sausage traybake, teriyaki chicken noodles and even mince pies.

She reached her dream target weight in October, but shedding the pounds can cause problems with your wardrobe.

Leanne, who runs the Tuesday and Wednesday night groups at Rushden Rugby Club, said: “As she was losing weight, she found that she needed to buy new clothes, but wasn’t at the final weight/dress size she wanted, and the clothes in the shops were really expensive.

"It just wasn’t something she was able to do and then buy again when she got to her dream weight.

"She set up a rail at the group where members could donate clothes that no longer fitted them, and other members in the group were able to buy new clothes for £1 while they were between sizes.

"Any excess clothes were donated to Cancer Research in Rushden.”

So far the group has raised £150 for charity and Jo has decided to give it to Encompass, the homeless outreach service so they can distribute it where it is needed the most.

Leanne added: “It’s a devastating time of year to be homeless and without family or support so she wanted to help our local homeless community.”

She is opening a new group at Rushden Rugby Club at 7.30am and 9am on Wednesdays from January 3.