How does recycling and donating old coins help Kidney Care UK?
The value of your foreign currency may not be a surprise, but it is estimated that collectively there is nearly £2 billion simply sitting in drawers or boxes in UK homes. An estimated £1.2 billion of now unusable old UK currency is also hidden away.
Sending us your old coins is a zero-cost way of donating to us. Our supporters send us more than 40 different currencies that can generate thousands of pounds a year to support kidney patients.
What to do with your old coins and currency
If you have currency you would like to donate, simply request a Collector’s pack and we will send you everything you need.
- Collect all your old and foreign currency. The more you can collect, the greater the donation – we accept foreign banknotes, foreign coins, and old British decimal coins (the heavy ones!). In fact, you could arrange to collect old and foreign currency from your family and friends, your neighbours and even your colleagues at work. There is no need to sort your notes or coins.
- Complete your returns form. Please complete the form in your Collector's pack so we can thank you for your support. You can also request a new envelope or collection box with this form.
- Post your donation and returns form. Simply pack the prepaid self-addressed envelope as evenly as possible, add your returns form and pop it in the post. It is a good idea to tape any coins to some paper to stop them moving about within the envelope. If your donation weighs more than 2kg, please let us know and we can arrange to collect your donation.
Should you have any questions, please contact us on 01420 541424 or via [email protected]
If you’d like to pay for postage and send your coins directly to Xchange Master, post them to: Kidney Care UK Stamp Appeal, Xchange Master Ltd, 272 Bath Street, Glasgow, G2 4JR.
Sadly, we cannot send the collector’s pack to the Channel Islands. If you’re living in the Channel Islands you can still donate, but you will have to pay for the postage yourself. The address to send your coins to is Kidney Care UK Stamp Appeal, Xchange Master Ltd, 272 Bath Street, Glasgow, G2 4JR. Thank you!
How donating old coins and currency to charity works
First, you package up all your used coins and currency in the prepaid envelope and mail them to our partner company called Xchange Master, a leading stamp and currency service provider. From there, the coins are sorted into each currency to ensure we receive the maximum possible price.
Xchange Master takes a total of each currency and provides a breakdown per currency, minus their rates. The coins/notes are then sold on eBay or to a specialist who redistributes the currency to the country of origin. Each currency box holds a different value depending on the currency in the box, but on average each foreign currency box raises £60 for Kidney Care UK.
What currency can I donate to Kidney Care UK?
There are four major categories of coins and currency you can send us.
- Foreign banknotes
- Foreign coins
- Old British decimal coins and banknotes (anything after 1971)
- Old British pre-decimal coins and banknotes (anything before 1971)
We welcome all foreign banknotes and coins, no matter how old or what currency they are. Only 20% of the £560 million of foreign coins that are brought back to the UK every year is converted back into UK currency, so be sure to dig out those old cents, pesos, and yen so we can use them to support kidney patients.
We also welcome old British decimal coins and banknotes, and British pre-decimal currency (shillings, crowns, old pennies, and banknotes).
Unfortunately, tokens (such as transportation tokens, gaming tokens, or trolley tokens) do not hold any value for this appeal.
I have a coin collection to donate to charity.
If you have a larger number of coins (and/or stamps) to donate, Xchange Master can arrange a courier collection for you. There are two courier options:
- Xchange Master will send you a drop off label – via email or post – for any major courier service. You then package up the coins/stamps and drop them off at your nearest collection point.
- A courier will be sent directly to your home or workplace to collect the coin/stamp donation. However, there are no specific time slots offered, so you or someone else will need to be in all day.
If you think you may require a courier, you can contact Xchange Master directly on 0141 328 9357, or email them at [email protected]. Xchange Master are open weekdays between 9:00am and 4:30pm. (If you live in the Channel Islands, you may be eligible for the courier service.)
Request a Collector's pack to donate coins and currency to Kidney Care UK
Thank you for choosing to support Kidney Care UK. Fill in our Collector's pack request form and we will send you everything you need to post us your currency donation for free. The Collector’s pack includes:
- Our step-by-step guide to collecting stamps
- Our step-by-step guide guide to donating old and foreign currencies
- A prepaid returns envelope (so it is free for you to send us your donation)
Encourage friends, family and colleagues to collect old coins and foreign currency for Kidney Care UK
You can also request a Collection box to get your whole community involved in collecting currency for us. Why not ask your work colleagues or a local business or school to start collecting? Get your friends, family and neighbours involved too and you’ll soon have a full collection box to donate, raising an average of £60 for Kidney Care UK. We will put every single coin you send us to work to raise funds to support our kidney community.
If you have any questions or need any help, please email [email protected] or call 01420 552698. Thank you for your support.