A Highland charity has had to scale back its donation drive at this year’s Belladrum festival.
Highland Supports Refugees (HSR) has been working with festival organisers for years, collecting people’s unwanted camping gear.
They then process it and transport it to refugees displaced in Europe and the Middle East.
Chairwoman of the HSR committee, Hannah Sutherland, says tents and sleeping bags are “the most sought-after” items.
In previous years, more than 70 volunteers have participated in “the big clear down”, gathering gear at the end of Belladrum.
But due to manpower issues this year, the charity has been forced to scale back.
A drop-off point at a bunker within the site is in operation for people to donate their unwanted gear – and Mrs Sutherland was keen to stress it is very much needed.
Mrs Sutherland said: “In the past, we have done it on a larger scale, we would have volunteers pack down abandoned tents and take them away.
“We are working on a slightly smaller scale this year because of logistical and manpower issues, but we didn’t want to do nothing when Belladrum is kind enough to let us attend.
“Any camping equipment that people don’t want, instead of just abandoning it and taken to a landfill, we want to send them to places where they can be used.”
‘Make the most of what we can do’
Mrs Sutherland says the initiative is a “two-pronged attack” as Belladrum organisers want to reduce the waste left behind each year.
Signposts alert festival goers to HRS’s presence at Belladrum, who can then drop off their gear they don’t want, which is then taken to containers and transported to refugee sites.
“The need is always changing, we have sent containers of aid to camps in France, Greece, Serbia but also Jordon, Lebanon and Syria.
“We are very reactive, normally collecting donations and then when we have a full container, contact various camps to find out what their needs are.”
Mrs Campbell admitted it was a worry that people might miss their collection point, as their presence has helped raise awareness.
“I would have loved to have been able to do the huge-scale operation moving down the field, deconstructing tents, but it’s not going to happen, but we are still going to make the most of what we can do.”
Highland Supports Refugees donation site is located at the top of the red camp throughout this year’s Belladrum festival.
