Care home residents tie dye t-shirts for guide dog charity

TIE DYE t-shirts have been rolling off a mini-production line at a Barnsley care home as residents raise money for a guide dog charity.

Residents at Deangate Care Home, Towngate, Mapplewell, have been producing the colourful creations in aid of The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association.

Staff at the care home and the wider Hill Care Group, which operates Deangate, have been sending their white t-shirts and bags for life to get the tie dye treatment.

For just £3, residents are giving the garments a new, brighter lease of life, before sending them back to their owners.

Resident Mike Leadbetter said: “I’ve never done anything like this before. I didn’t know what to expect when we put the elastic bands on the t-shirts. Once we’d done the dyeing and took the bands off it was amazing to see the patterns that came out.”

Sylvia Appleyard added: “I couldn’t wait to get stuck in, especially when I knew it was for raising money for a great cause. We will be making more so all donations are welcome.”

Rachael Addy, activities coordinator at Deangate Care Home, said: “The residents wanted to raise money for a good cause, so we introduced them to tie dye as we thought it would be fun and it’s something they had never done before.

“They wanted to do tie dye on garments and fabric type bags for life to raise money for guide dogs for the blind.

“We asked homes in our company to send us garments to dye for them and now we’re opening up for the service to the wider community and we will dye their items for a small fee of just £3.”

Anyone who would like their items tie dyeing can deliver them alongside payment of £3 per item to Deangate Care Home, Towngate, Mapplewell, Barnsley, S75 6AT. Finished items must be collected from the care home.

All money raised will go to The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association.