It’s the village dubbed “Knightsbridge of the north” which millionaires, billionaires, footballers and celebrities call home. So it’s perhaps little surprise that the cast-offs sent to its charity shops are a little out of the ordinary too.

I mean, where else outside London would you find the likes of Givenchy sliders, Chanel courts, Marchesa ballgowns and even some designer snow boots casually sitting in charity shop windows? All these items and more can be found in the treasure trove charity shops of Alderley Edge in Cheshire.

I’ve seen many regular charity shop-goers hailing Alderley Edge and neighbouring Wilmlsow for their excellent in-store ranges, and there’s no doubt that if you’re looking for designer and high-end high street brands these are great places to shop.

But it’s not the place for you if you think you’re going to be bagging some Chanel shoes for pennies. The shops here are well used to their premium and luxury donations and the prices reflect their value, though you will still find massive reductions. With that in mind, I had a look around at what was on offer this week at the village’s five charity shops.

Naturally, the beauty of charity shop shopping is that on any given day you never know what you’re going to get. I did encounter one big problem though with the Alderley charity shops and it was not just the price. It was the sizing for female fashion.

I guess rich Alderley Edge residents must be a lot thinner than the general population, because there were a lot of size 6 and 8 items for women — and not that much in bigger sizes. Same with shoes: a lot of size 4s and 5s and nothing bigger for women.

With that said, there were still lots of bargains to be had so here’s what I found on my midweek visit. And if you’ve got your eye on any of the items I’ve highlighted here, you’d best get your skates on because stuff doesn’t hang around long before it gets snapped up by someone else at these charity shops.

Oxfam

This is the biggest of the charity shops in Alderley Edge, and the first you get to if you’re heading off the train.

On past visits I’ve found some great fashions and big bargains here but on this occasion it seemed quite light on women’s fashion. I found a lovely beige Zara winter coat though for £14.99, and some great Zara wellies for just £1.50 but sadly not in my size.

There seemed to be a good range of classic men’s brogues by well-made brand Roland Cartier for £15. I love this shop though for the massive book section at the back. The children’s book library is really something to behold and always with a superb range. It’s massively well stocked with books that look as if they’ve never even been read. There was the entire David Walliams collection at £1.99 each and you could also get a full boxed Horrid Henry collection for just £5.99.

Age UK

Next along the street is Age UK which is a small boutique, but always packed with interesting curios, and I got some great Christmas decorations here last year. On this occasion though, it was the designer fashion that immediately caught my eye in the packed window which featured branded trainers and handbags galore.

Indeed, I could barely believe it when I saw some black Givenchy sliders that will cost you £295 if you want to buy them new. Here, they were just £45 and in great condition. The only problem was, yep, the size. They were a 5 and I don’t think my size 7 feet would quite squish into them.

On the first rail on the way into the shop there were more stunning fashion items. A whole array of designer label ballgowns, including some dazzlers by Rachel Zoe, Alice and Olivia, Marchesa and Victoria Beckham.

As any fashionista will know, these kinds of dresses would set you back anything from £700 to £1,000 if purchased new but here they were priced from £100 to £150 each.

They were all gorgeous and I particularly liked a silver sparkling ITMFL party dress and a green Self Portrait dress (both £75 but new would cost £300+) so it was disappointing that everything good here was in a size 8.

I asked the shop assistant why there were so many small sizes and she said there had been a recent big donation from one kind woman which would explain why they were all in the small sizes.

Elsewhere in the shop there were more bargains though. I saw a box that said “Playstation 2 console, controllers, mics and games” for £50 which sounded like a good deal to me.

There was also these wild lamps on the way in, that immediately intrigued me when I saw the notice “Vintage Boho Coconut Sea Urchin Lamp – £150 each – PLEASE GOOGLE”.

Naturally, I did just that, and crazily these sorts of things seem to sell for £1,000 or more. I was not in the market for new lamps though, so on I headed to the next shop.

Barnardos

Onward to Barndardos, where I found a lot more size diversity. I saw some nice dresses in a size 18 and 20 with high end high street labels like Coast and Monsoon. My eye was drawn to a row of trainers on a shelf and I found a great condition pair of Nikes just £8.50 but annoyingly they were too big.

There was also a really cute raffia handbag by The White Company for £15, and an elegant wool winter coat by Coast for £20 that caught my eye. At the back of the shop I also found a very on-trend beige wool dress in a size 16 by River Island that was new with tags still on, for £17.50. There was also a wardrobe with more higher end items and evening dresses, and even full mother-of-the-bride suits for £40.

Cancer Research UK

Next was the Cancer Research shop, and this was by far my favourite shop on the day. It seemed to be rammed full of amazing fashions, brands and styles that I would normally buy on the high street.

In fact one of the first things I spotted was a dress I actually own: a gorgeous blue Whistles dress covered in embroidered colourful birds for £18.25. It’s literally the perfect party dress and I’d highly recommend it if you’re a size 12, go and snap it up! I also loved that the window had been very fashionably curated, and inside items were sectioned well into trends and colours.

I fell in love with a spotty dress by Baukjen with a bit of a frill on it, which I decided I would buy for £18.50, and a shirt by designer shirt brand Rails that was also £18 – they might sound pricey but Rails shirts sell for £178 new and the material is just gorgeous so I know it will be an item that lasts.

There were some good items for kids in here, incluidng new-looking Nike football boots for kids for just £8.50, and a Manchester United training top aged 11-12 for £6.50.

As I was paying up I also saw a cabinet filled with authentic Chanel items. There was a pair of espadrille type sandals as well as heeled court shoes but both were well out of my price range at £170 each.

There was also a good-as-new Barbour cream ladies jackets with furry trim for £95 – new this would have cost around £250 though – but yep, it was a Size 8.

As I browsed some of the more affordable fashions, I saw a big sign warning off shoplifters.

I asked the shop assistant if they’d had trouble with stuff being stolen and I was shocked to hear her say it has been a real issue – particularly on weekends.

That made me really sad and quite angry actually – what sort of a person thinks it’s ok to steal from a charity shop? Especially one trying to fund a cure for cancer.

Even worse given the news this week that Cancer Research shops across the country are facing closure, as bosses of the charity try to mitigate the huge changes to the retail landscape.

In their statement about the changes, the charity said this week: “Like many high street retailers, we’re faced with rising costs, inflationary pressures, and changing consumer habits – including reduced footfall, higher national insurance contributions, and growing competition from online resale platforms.”

Ah yes “online resale platforms”. I couldn’t help but wonder if the reason items are priced so high in the charity shops here is to try and stop people simply buying things cheap and then reselling them for a profit.

Either way, it’s never been more important to try and support your local charity shops right now if you can, it’s not only a more sustainable way to live, but the donations are providing vital funds to these worthy causes.

Marie Curie

My final stop of the day was at the Marie Curie charity shop. This was another shop with a really great mix of fashion items, including a very impressive rack of shoes.

I spotted a great Michael Kors winter hooded and padded jacket in navy blue for £15, but it was in a size 10. Similarly, I loved a great Whistles green dress but that was also in a size 10.

In fact, if you’re a size 8 or 10 with size 5 feet I really could not recommend more strongly heading over to Alderley Edge right now to see the stuff in the stores here. There’s some spectacular designer fashions up for grabs in those more petite sizes.