Alnwick pub inundated with donations for Ukraine

The Oaks Hotel in Alnwick put an appeal on social media amid the humanitarian crisis the country is facing.

It resulted in huge quantities being donated including clothing, sleeping bags, toiletries, and baby products.

All donations will be taken to the Polish Centre on Maple Street, Newcastle, and will then be transported to temporary accommodation centres for Ukrainian families, or transferred to Ukraine where needed.

The pub is owned by Hawthorn, the community pub company, which owns more than 700 pubs across England, Scotland and Wales.

Pub partner Martin Russel, who has been at The Oaks Hotel for nine years, said: “We’ve had a phenomenal response from the community to our appeal for donations. We can fill an entire bedroom with all the items we’ve received, and we have four people working on organising and boxing everything up – it’s been like a full-time job.

“Everyone from the town and surrounding villages has come together to show their support which has been incredible, and our local Morrisons has also donated a number of items too.

"The generosity we’ve seen has blown us away and we’re glad we able to help those in need in any way we can.”

Andrew Parker, director of leased and tenanted operations at Hawthorn, added: “We’re proud to be a community pub company, and it’s more important than ever that our pub Partners are doing what they can to support their communities nearby and further afield. Well done to Martin and everyone at The Oaks Hotel from all of us at Hawthorn.”