The Madlug Story
No child should carry their life in a bin bag.
Starting With Nothing
Madlug was founded in 2015 by Dave Linton. A man whose only experience in the luggage industry was bags of enthusiasm. This 40-something Youth Worker was heartbroken to learn that most children in care transport their worldly belongings in a bin bag. In that moment, Dave set out to do something about it. With just £480, he started Madlug and came up with our ‘Buy one Give one’ approach: with every bag you purchase, one will be given to a child in care.
The Reality
There are over 90,000 children in care in the UK and Ireland. One child enters the UK care system every 15 minutes. What’s more, over half are victims of neglect or abuse. Because children in care aren’t given a voice, the public don’t know about the problems they face every day. Which is why it’s so important that their story is heard.
How We Help
The cost of every bag in our shop covers: a free bag for a child in care and the item you choose. We worked with Care experienced young people and Health Trusts / Local Authorities to develop a giving bag that is centred around the needs of children in care.
The bag itself is unbranded to avoid stigma. It folds away to fit neatly into a sock drawer or a Social Worker’s car boot without wasting storage space. And each bag has a label that says “You are incredible” to remind every child that they have value, worth and dignity.
