Stan’s Secret Santa

Stanta Claws is back in town and ready to make our annual Christmas gift appeal truly roar-some.

Our beloved Tyrannosaurus rex, Stan, is putting his Santa hat on once again to deliver festive gifts to people experiencing homelessness and poverty across Manchester.

Stan’s Secret Santa runs from Tuesday 3 December to Sunday 8 December and we’ll be collecting gifts and food to donate to Manchester-based charities Barnabus and Mustard Tree.

Simply head down to the Museum during opening hours on any of those days to deliver donations to Stan and his team of elves. And of course, you can take a selfie with Stanta while you’re here.

We’re looking for donations of new, non-perishable Christmas food items, including chocolate selection boxes, biscuits and sweets, as well as items of clothing. All gifts will be gathered by Stanta’s elves at the end of the appeal and passed to Barnabus and Mustard Tree to help bring a little joy to people experiencing homelessness and poverty.

Check out the full list of donation items that our chosen charities need most below.

What items do our charities need?

Below you can find details of the donation items our charities need most. But if you’re unable to come along and make a donation in person you can support these wonderful Manchester charities by donating directly to Barnabus or Mustard Tree and marking donations as ‘Stan’s Secret Santa’.

Food

Selection boxes
Festive treats
Chocolate Santas
Christmas biscuits
Stocking fillers
Other non-perishable items (including tinned  and packaged food, cereal, UHT milk, sugar, tea bags)

Clothes

Thermal gloves
Hoodies/jumpers/coats
Jeans/joggers
Shoes/trainers/boots
New socks
New women’s bras and briefs
Novelty Christmas socks
Santa hats