TWAM - Tools With A Mission

Tools With A Mission (TWAM) is a Christian charity that collects surplus tools from around the UK and redistributes them to disadvantaged people in the developing world.

Willesborough Baptist Church supports Tools With A Mission. As well as many donations  of tools and equipment for refurbishment from WBC members, financial giving from  the church community has provided funds to ship two 20ft. containers of tools to Africa.

TWAM’s head office and warehouse are located in Ipswich. There are more than 200 volunteer collectors around the UK who collect tools in their own areas. The collector for the Ashford area is  Chris Tanton, a WBC member and also a director of the TWAM charity. He recently visited Uganda and Kenya as part of his TWAM activities.

      

Tools for Life

       

Tools can enable people to learn a trade and earn a living. Many tools are supplied to vocational training institutions and they are all sent in response to specific requests from approved agencies already working ‘on the ground’ in developing countries. The majority of the requests come from Africa – from countries such as Uganda, Zambia, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Rwanda, Benin, Kenya and Tanzania.

The tools that TWAM collects include sewing machines, knitting machines, tools for carpentry, engineering, building and plumbing, and manual typewriters, bicycles and computers. Wool, fabric, thread and other haberdashery items are also collected.
(see the full tools list here)

In 2009 TWAM dispatched over 180 tonnes of goods to Africa and other impoverished areas of the world. Because of the large quantity of goods that are shipped there is a substantial requirement for ongoing financial support. It costs around £3000 to ship a 20ft container to Africa and TWAM is currently shipping up to 20 containers per year.

TWAM employs only four people – a chief executive, a warehouse foreman, a secretary and a manager in Uganda. A vast amount of collecting, sorting, cleaning, refurbishing and packing is carried out by volunteers.

       

Getting in touch with TWAM

If you have items that you would like to donate to Tools With A Mission please contact:


If you would like to know more about TWAM generally: