On Wednesday 13th January 2021, the city of Prague opened its own furniture bank in Prague-Libuš. So far, it has helped equip 434 households.
During the past twelve months, the “bank” received 5,009 pieces of furniture, small electrical appliances or household equipment from a total of 1,058 donors.
Nábytková Banka Praha offers furniture and basic home appliances to people in material need. The municipal furniture bank is operated by the municipal contributory organisation Centre for Social Services in Prague.
Unwanted furniture can be donated to the bank by small donors as well as companies. After contacting the service coordinator, people can bring furniture and appliances they no longer want or use to the central warehouse in Obrataňská Street, where the furniture bank is located.
Employees of the furniture bank are also able to pick up the donations with their own vehicles. Everything will be distributed to people in need in Prague on the basis of cooperation with social services and social departments of city districts.
“As a city, we want to take care of all the Praguers in need who get into a difficult dilemma: whether to pay the first rent, buy a cot for their children, or buy a stove so they can cook for them. At the same time, we also save things that often end up in a collection yard or a junkyard, and yet they can still serve well,” says Milena Johnová, the councilor of the City of Prague for the area of social policy.
According to Martin Šimáček, head of the Centre of Social Services of Prague, there are thousands of such people living in the Czech capital at the moment.
“Over 20,000 people in Prague need social benefits, and over a thousand people have applied for one of the city’s social apartments. These are people who really have no money and who cannot afford housing if they don’t receive some sort of support.”
