From boxes of aid to a community hub of hope

More than a box: how compassion became a community network of care 

What began with one woman filling shoeboxes at her kitchen table has grown into humanitarian aid, practical crisis support and a welcoming community hub helping people across Lincolnshire. 

The week our spotlight this week focuses on Boxes of Hope. 

Sometimes, community action begins with a strategy, a funding programme and a carefully planned structure. 

At other times, it begins because somebody sees people in need and decides that standing by is not an option. For Boxes of Hope, that response began with a shoebox. 

When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Amanda Baxter (better known as Mandy) watched families leave their homes carrying only what they could manage. While recovering from illness at home in Holbeach, she began filling shoeboxes with toiletries and essential items from her kitchen table. 

As people heard what Mandy was doing, donations began arriving from across the community and further afield. Boxes filled her dining room. Volunteers offered their time. People donated supplies, sorted items, arranged transport and helped turn an individual response into a significant humanitarian effort.

Boxes of Hope reports that it has now sent 28 eighteen-tonne lorries of aid to Ukraine, carrying medical equipment, clothing, hygiene products, baby supplies and other essentials. Each lorry represents much more than its contents. It represents hundreds of people deciding that, although they may not be able to solve a crisis alone, they can still contribute something meaningful. 

A long-standing instinct to respond 

Although the organisation formally grew from the response to Ukraine, the belief behind Boxes of Hope began many years earlier. 

In 2008, Mandy’s son Sam was serving as a Royal Marine in Afghanistan. She began filling shoeboxes with games, sweets and morale-boosting items for his unit. 

The boxes arrived following an incident in which three members of the unit had been killed. Sam later told his mother that they could not have arrived at a more important time and encouraged her to continue. 

Years later, following the Grenfell Tower fire, Mandy again turned to shoeboxes as a practical expression of care. Having lived in a London tower block during part of her childhood, she felt personally affected by the tragedy and travelled to London with toiletries and essential items. 

Reflecting on that experience, Mandy told Lincolnshire Life: 

“I saw the real power of community.” 

The donations that remained were shared with a church in Spalding and a women’s refuge. 

The principle that would later shape Boxes of Hope was already there: when people bring together what they have: time, belongings, transport, knowledge or compassion – they can make an enormous difference at moments when others feel most alone. 

From Holbeach to Ukraine 

As the response to the war grew, Mandy wanted to understand where the donations were going and what people genuinely needed. 

She followed one of the aid lorries across Europe and spent time in Lviv, establishing relationships and seeing the circumstances in which displaced people were living. 

Schools had become temporary shelters. People were sleeping on floors while lessons continued in basements. The experience helped Boxes of Hope develop direct connections and ensure that donations reflected real, identified needs rather than assumptions about what might be useful. 

The organisation also began supporting Ukrainians arriving in Lincolnshire. 

It provided clothing, furniture, household essentials and help with practical administration as individuals and families moved from host accommodation into homes of their own. 

But the team also recognised that rebuilding a life requires more than possessions. 

Boxes of Hope created opportunities for Ukrainians to meet others who understood the experience of leaving behind their home, language, community and familiar support networks. Crafting sessions brought Ukrainian and local residents together to make things, practise English, share traditions and form new connections. 

One testimonial shared through How Are You Lincolnshire captures the importance of this support:

“Boxes of Hope have changed our lives in the UK… Meeting other Ukrainians made us feel not alone.” 

That final phrase—not alone—speaks to something at the heart of the organisation. 

Boxes of Hope provides essential items, but it also creates connection, belonging and a sense that somebody is alongside you when life has changed beyond recognition. 

Recognising need closer to home 

While the organisation continued sending humanitarian aid internationally, the team was becoming increasingly aware of the hardship experienced by people locally. 

Families were struggling with rising costs. Some people were moving into accommodation without furniture, bedding or basic household items. Young parents needed pushchairs, nappies and children’s clothing. Others were experiencing homelessness, bereavement, domestic abuse, poor mental health or isolation. 

Often, these needs were interconnected. 

A person asking for a bed or sofa might also be struggling with debt. Somebody needing food could be experiencing a housing crisis. A parent seeking children’s clothing might also feel isolated or unsafe at home. 

In many cases, people did not need one isolated service. They needed practical help, emotional support and clear guidance through a situation that had become overwhelming. 

Boxes of Hope developed in response. 

Now operating as a Community Interest Company, the organisation supports individuals and families across Lincolnshire while continuing its humanitarian work overseas. 

Its community hub on Holbeach High Street has become a visible and approachable place where people can walk through the door, talk to someone and begin finding the support they need. 

A front door into support 

One of the greatest strengths of the Boxes of Hope model is its simplicity.

People do not necessarily need to understand the service system or know which organisation they require before asking for help. 

When somebody is facing a crisis, navigating multiple websites, telephone numbers, eligibility criteria, appointments and referral pathways can become another burden. Boxes of Hope helps create a more accessible starting point. 

The organisation does not seek to replace specialist services. Instead, it provides a welcoming community setting where people can be listened to and connected with the right organisations. 

The hub brings together practical assistance, informal community activity and specialist support. 

Its work has included Citizens Advice outreach, domestic abuse services, cancer support, mental health community connectors, housing and cost-of-living guidance, volunteering advice and help with practical processes such as passport applications. 

Community activities, craft groups and opportunities to meet others sit alongside these services. 

That combination matters. 

Someone may initially enter the hub because they need furniture or advice about a bill, while also experiencing loneliness, anxiety or an unsafe relationship. 

Another person may attend a social or craft activity and, over time, feel able to share a concern once trust has been established. 

Support does not always begin with an appointment or formal assessment. Sometimes, it begins with a warm drink, a familiar face or somebody taking the time to listen. 

Creating a sustainable way to keep helping 

As Boxes of Hope grew, so did the number of people turning to it for support—and the cost of maintaining its humanitarian aid, community hub, referrals, collections and deliveries. 

The Community Miracle Shop was created to help give the organisation a more sustainable source of income, ensuring it could continue responding to people in need rather than relying entirely on short-term grants and donations. 

Speaking when the shop officially opened, Mandy explained: 

“We always wanted Boxes of Hope to be sustainable so we can continue to run it to help those that need it.” 

The shop therefore has two closely connected purposes. It helps fund the wider work of Boxes of Hope, while also making clothing, furniture, school uniform and household essentials affordable and accessible to local families. Its development was supported by a £25,000 Postcode Lottery grant, which helped the organisation open and establish the space. 

The shop also creates a practical route for the large volume of items donated by the community. Depending on what is needed at the time, goods can be sold through the Community Miracle Shop or furniture warehouse to generate income, or provided directly to individuals and families referred by organisations such as social services, domestic abuse services, schools and local charities. 

This means a single donation can make a difference in several ways. An item may help somebody furnish a home following homelessness, domestic abuse or another crisis. It may be sold at an affordable price to someone managing a limited household budget. Alternatively, the income raised may help cover the wider costs of keeping the hub open, transporting aid, collecting furniture and maintaining community support. 

When the shop was first being developed, it was available by appointment for people who had been referred and needed to select essential items. The longer-term vision was broader: to create a place for families, promote reuse and upcycling, teach practical skills and ensure that very little donated by the community went to waste. 

Today, the Community Miracle Shop continues that model—keeping prices low while helping fund Boxes of Hope’s wider work. As the organisation describes it, it is: 

“Built by the Community, for the Community.” 

The shop is therefore not separate from the support Boxes of Hope provides. It is one of the mechanisms that allows that support to continue: turning donated goods into affordable essentials, direct assistance and ongoing investment in the community. 

Growing food, confidence and connection 

Boxes of Hope also supports wider initiatives responding to local need, including the Holbeach Community Larder and Store. 

The organisation’s community allotment has begun providing fresh produce for the larder, helping local families access nutritious food. 

However, the value of the allotment extends beyond what it grows. 

It creates opportunities for volunteering, wellbeing and social connection. It offers local people and schools a chance to learn, participate and contribute to something shared. 

In 2025, Boxes of Hope received support through the Lincolnshire Co-op Community Champions scheme to help develop the project. The funding represented another example of local residents, shoppers, businesses and community organisations contributing collectively to a wider purpose. 

Like the shoeboxes with which the organisation began, the allotment demonstrates how small, sustained contributions can develop into something much larger. 

Creating space for difficult conversations 

Boxes of Hope has also used its community reach to support the campaign for Holly’s Law. 

Established in memory of Holly Bramley, the campaign calls for a national animal cruelty register and greater recognition of the connection between animal abuse, coercive control and violence against people. 

Boxes of Hope has helped raise awareness, gather petition signatures and create opportunities for conversations about domestic abuse and how patterns of violence can escalate. 

This campaigning work sits alongside the confidential domestic abuse support available through the hub. 

It reflects an organisation that is not only responding when people reach crisis point, but also helping communities recognise risk, speak about difficult issues and advocate for wider change. 

Powered by people and partnerships 

The scale and breadth of Boxes of Hope’s work would not be possible without volunteers, donors, businesses and community partners. 

The organisation works alongside local authorities, health services, social prescribers, Citizens Advice, domestic abuse organisations, police, schools, food banks, churches and voluntary and community groups. 

These partnerships help connect people with specialist knowledge and ensure that Boxes of Hope can complement, rather than duplicate, existing support. 

Volunteers are equally central.

They collect and deliver furniture, load vehicles, sort donations, support the shop and warehouse, prepare refreshments, welcome visitors, raise funds and provide listening ears. 

Some roles require practical skills or physical work. Others simply require somebody willing to be kind, reliable and present. 

Community involvement takes many forms. 

People organise birthday collections, giving trees and fundraising events. Businesses provide sponsorship, venues and practical support. Residents donate belongings, shop through the organisation’s outlets, share information or contribute through its Cost of a Coffee campaign. 

These contributions show that Boxes of Hope is not simply delivering a service to the community. 

Much of its work is created and sustained by the community. 

Hope made practical 

The word hope can sometimes feel abstract. 

At Boxes of Hope, it repeatedly becomes something tangible. 

It is a lorry carrying medical equipment and hygiene supplies across Europe. 

It is a bed, table or sofa for somebody entering an empty property. 

It is fresh produce arriving at a community larder. 

It is also the knowledge that somebody will listen before deciding what kind of help is needed. 

From one woman filling boxes at her kitchen table to a humanitarian operation, community shop, warehouse, allotment and multi-service hub, Boxes of Hope demonstrates how individual compassion can become lasting community infrastructure. 

Find out more 

To find out more, visit Boxes of Hope at its Community Hub, 23 High Street, Holbeach, PE12 7DY, open Monday to Friday from 10am to 3pm. You can contact the team on 01406 420261 or 07871 971868, or email reception@boxesofhope.co.uk. The Community Miracle Shop is based at 14 High Street, Holbeach, and is open Wednesday to Saturday from 9am to 3pm.