Fairfield resident Sandra Robinson found clothes and personal documents dumped among the rubbish.

Pieces of clothing and black sacks covered in maggots litter the concrete outside a second-hand shop in Hamilton.

The Red Cross shop in Enderley has become a dumping ground over the festive period.

The donations started piling up on Christmas Eve, the day after the shop closed.

CHRISTEL YARDLEY/STUFF Some local residents sorted through the piles to take home goods but others, like Sandra Robinson, tried to tidy the mess.

A week later and the pile has not only become an eyesore - it's starting to smell.

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Local resident Sandra Robinson spent Sunday morning cleaning some of the mess.

CHRISTEL YARDLEY/STUFF Flies swarmed over the items dumped outside the store, which sits between a bakery and a dairy.

She removed a heap of empty cardboard boxes, folded them down and put them in her boot to put out at recycling.

There were also documents with copies of a woman's passport and flight history over the last five years.

The documents also had the woman's address and handwritten notes.

CHRISTEL YARDLEY/STUFF Piles of clothes sat at the entrance of the shop.

Robinson found it with a box of books that belonged to the University of Waikato.

"It was a mess so I thought even if I save these guys at Red Cross a half an hour of time by cleaning some of it up, then that will be a big help," she said.

"Some of it I couldn't bear to touch, there were boxes that were disgusting and mouldy.

"And the smell ... it's so sad."

On Sunday afternoon, locals were rummaging through the bags, collecting the items they wanted and tossing the unwanted pieces to the pavement.

And a group of young children were trying on pairs of high heel shoes they found inside one of the bags.

Others were seen loading items into the boots of their cars.

The pile is so big, it's blocked the footpath.

The store at Five Cross Roads Shopping Centre, which sits between a dairy and a bakery, doesn't open until January 8 and until then, Robinson believes the pile will continue to grow.

"The Salvation Army is metres away and that area is tidy, they've got people that come in and check the bins and tidy up but not here," Robinson said.

"Most of the stuff left here people can't use.

"Someone has to pay to dump this stuff and now look - there's flies and maggots everywhere and animal bones.

"It's a dumping ground."

General manager of corporate services at New Zealand Red Cross, Anne Smith, said in an emailed statement, that it would be a shame if the donations go to waste.

"Red Cross stores play an important part in supporting our work at home and abroad and they rely on generous donations from the public," Smith said.

"Please do not leave goods outside Red Cross stores, instead wait until your local shop is open and give your donations directly to our friendly team so they can be processed."