CHUCK out your old teapots and vinyl records and help make money to improve the lives of poor people in the developing world.

That’s the message from managers at Oxford-based charity Oxfam, who say fewer items are being donated to their charity shops as recession-hit families cut their spending.

So far this year donations are down 12 per cent, which could mean a total of 1.2 million fewer donations by the end of the year.

The charity was alerted to the fall by Wastesaver, its recycling facility in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, which reported a drop in the volume of stock it was handling.

According to Oxfam, the fall results from people buying fewer new items – which means they have less need to throw out their old goods.

And with fewer people moving house, there has been a reduction in the number of household donations, with a seven per cent reduction in crockery, china, glass and curtains.

However, the number of Oxfam shoppers remains at the same level as last year – and sales are still up five per cent on the previous year.

Jan Tansley, the manager of the shop in Broad Street, the first Oxfam shop in the country, said: “We have definitely seen a fall in the number of homeware items that are being donated. I suppose people just aren’t moving house as much at the moment because of the recession.

“We are seeing less bric-a-brac – teapots, cutlery and milk jugs and we want more of it because every donation can make a difference.

“We try to get the best possible value out of the donations, and old vinyl is one of our biggest sellers.

“I would urge people to have a look through their old vinyl, and see what they can donate, and their wardrobes for clothes they have not worn for a long time.

“Last Easter we started opening on Sunday, and lots of students now volunteer to help out.

“Sunday is a very busy shopping day in Oxford and this is one way of trying to maximise the number of donations we get.”

According to research by Oxfam and Marks & Spencer, 46 per cent of people’s clothes – an estimated 2.4 billion items – were not worn once in the past year.

David McCullough, Oxfam’s director of trading, said the £20m profit made by Oxfam shops last year was enough to fund all the charity’s work in Congo, Tanzania, Uganda, Ethiopia and Somalia for a year.

He added: “We can’t sell fresh air, and shops rely on the generosity of the public for their stock.

“The most important thing is that people keep bringing us their stuff.

“Whether it’s a pair of trousers or a pair of curtains, we can use it to make money and help poor people all over the world.”