FAQs
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No, unfortunately we can only accept donations from people aged 18 or over. All instruments and cases donated must also belong solely to the donor.
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Electrical instruments must be PAT tested before use under health and safety regulations. If we were to do so, this would considerably increase our costs. The project is therefore focused on orchestral, non-electrical instruments.
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That's great news! If you'd like to donate more than ten instruments, please contact us at info@dontstopthemusic.co.uk so we can discuss how best to proceed.
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A team of music specialists will be assessing all of the instruments donated and carrying out minor repairs where possible. However, your instrument should ideally be in full working order or otherwise only require minimal attention.
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Unfortunately it is too costly for us to carry out extensive repairs. If we receive an instrument that is considered, at our discretion, to be too damaged, it will be recycled, or parts may be used to fix other instruments donated to the Instrument Amnesty.
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Yes, you'll receive occasional emails from the Don't Stop the Music team about receipt of the instrument at our central processing unit and, if your instrument is eligible, its receipt at the school. Please see the Terms and Conditions for details of how to unsubscribe from these emails, if you decide at any point you no longer wish to receive them.
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No, unfortunately you cannot contact the school personally. However, when you donate your instrument at Oxfam you are able to include a message of support for the school. This will be given to the school (as long as it is appropriate) at the discretion of the Don't Stop The Music team.
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No, please do not leave your instrument outside the shop as it may be broken or taken by another member of the public. Contact your local Oxfam branch to find out its opening times.
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If you'd like to pledge an additional instrument (which is great news!) please submit a new online form.
If you can no longer donate all of the instruments you’ve previously pledged, when you drop off the remaining instruments at your local Oxfam shop please complete the full paper form – giving the same email address as you used in the original online form so we can update our records. If you can no longer donate any instrument at all, please unsubscribe from emails sent to you by Don't Stop the Music so we do not contact you again.
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Unfortunately we are not able to retrieve and return instruments once they have been donated, so please be sure you don’t mind parting with it before you do!
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Yes, you can. Please just fill in the full paper form when you drop off the instruments at your local Oxfam shop, giving the same email address as you used in the original online form – so we can discount your original pledge.
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There are almost 700 Oxfam shops located across the UK. To find your nearest branch, visit Oxfam's shop finder.
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The Don't Stop The Music team is unable to collect donations from individuals, businesses or organisations unless the donation is of a considerable volume. Please contact us at info@dontstopthemusic.co.uk so that we can discuss next steps should this be the case.
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If you've got a particularly large instrument to donate, please contact us at info@dontstopthemusic.co.uk so we can discuss whether there are other options available. Please note: We cannot accept pianos.
Please read our full Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy which will apply to your instrument donation.
Contact us
More questions? Email info@dontstopthemusic.co.uk. Unfortunately due to the high volume of emails we receive, we cannot respond to every query.