Baby Basics Belfast will soon deliver 3,000th pack

Wednesday March 11th 2026

Baby Basics volunteers Susan Hamilton and Heather Gibson help Church Army Evangelist Sister Karen Webb sort donations in the Base at St Columba’s, Whiterock.

Baby Basics Belfast, a project established by the Base, Connor’s North Belfast Centre of Mission, in 2017, will soon be delivering its 3,000^th basket to support a family with a new baby.

Now located in St Columba’s, Whiterock, Baby Basics Belfast is one of five centres in Northern Ireland which collects essential items for families in crisis. These are packed in a Moses basket, a baby bath, or a laundry basket, depending on the needs of a referred family.

Sister Karen Webb of the North Belfast Centre of Mission, said demand was high, with 510 packs sent out from January to December 2025.

The project is volunteer run, with volunteers at the Base on Mondays and Wednesdays from 10am-3pm, sorting clothes and donations and making up packs.

There are currently 4-5 regular volunteers. “My 90-year-old mother comes to help – she loves the craic!” Karen said.

“We take good quality clothes and prams, second-hand Moses baskets, sterilisers, toys and books, and nappies – even if the packets have been opened.”

They cannot accept used car seats.

The project has been boosted by a number of generous donations recently, including nine brand-new prams, donated by UK companies, from Baby Basics UK.

They have been able to bulk buy Moses baskets and mattresses at a considerably reduced price from the charitable wing of Clair de Lune, a baby products company, and this has been funded by a grant from Belfast Cathedral’s Black Santa Appeal.

Ikea Belfast has given Baby Basics free reign with choosing items from its catalogue, including cots, mattresses, high chairs, soft toys, weaning kits and playmats for free!

“We are so grateful, particularly for the cots,” Karen said.” We get a lot of health professionals coming to us with referrals, and safe sleeping is very important. Families in crisis cannot afford all that they need, and these cots are suitable for babies from four months. Otherwise, it is co-sleeping – in one case a baby was sleeping in a drawer.

“Also, in cases of domestic abuse, a mother may have to leave everything behind when she flees her house.”

Anyone interested in making a donation to Baby Basics Belfast, or in volunteering to help sort and pack the baskets, should contact Karen on karen.webb@churcharmy.com.