Voluntary and Community Groups
Many items we throw away haven’t reached the end of their useful life and are disposed of because they are just no longer required. Clothes that no longer fit, furniture that does not fit in a newly decorated room or other items you have just replaced with a more up-to-date model.
Why just dispose of an item when somebody else could reuse it?
The easiest way to reuse something is to donate it to your local charity shop who will sell it on. For more information on your local charity shops visit:
The photo to the right shows Jean, a volunteer at Emmaus, Nailsworth.
We have many voluntary and community groups in Gloucestershire that will take your unwanted items and put them to good use. Please use the A-Z list on the left hand side to guide you to a relevant organisation. See below for a few of examples of what Community Groups in Gloucestershire do.
Computer Recycling
There are a few options for this in Gloucestershire.
IT School Africa is a registered charity that collects old computer equipment and distributes it free to schools in Africa. You can donate desktop computers (Pentium III and above), laptops (provided they have power adapters), Monitors (though CRT's must be accompanied with a working desktop machine), keyboards, mice and power leads, floppy drives, optical drives and hard drives and ICT text books. They can NOT accept printers, scanners and Apple Macs.
For further details or to donate equipment please call Catherine Richardson or Tim Barnes on 01242 228800 or email info@itschoolsafrica.org IT Schools Africa Unit 8, Mead Park Industrial Estate, Mead Road, Cheltenham, www.itschoolsafrica.org
Hemplan Design near Innsworth (n.b. this is a commercial organisation)
There is a charge for collection but equipment can be dropped off for free. Hemplan Design Limited, P4 Innsworth Technology Park, Innsworth Lane, Gloucester, GL3 1DL, 01452 730015, www.hemplan.co.uk
Engelhard in the Forest of Dean (n.b. this is a commercial organisation)
There is a unit cost for computer screens of £7, but all other equipment is recycled free of charge. There is a collection charge of £10 per trip. You can drop off all equipment for free. Engelhard, Valley Road, Cinderford, Gloucestershire, GL14 2PB, 01594 827744, www.catalysts.basf.com
The Tewkesbury Adult Opportunity Centre (AOC) may also take some computers.
Tewkesbury Adult Opportunity Centre, The Birches, Station Rd, GL20 5DR. Contact Suzanne Fields Tel: 01684 293096.
Unwanted furniture
In Gloucestershire we have many charitable organisations that will take your unwanted furniture. To raise funds the organisations will sell on your unwanted furniture at cheap prices to the public.
This is an essential service for people on low incomes who are looking for affordable furniture in their home. They also provide much needed training and employment opportunities for their local area.
Most organisations provide a free collection service. However, not all items can be taken, and some organisations may assess the quality and saleability of the product more closely than others.
All organisations will insist that any furniture meets the latest fire regulation standards.
For more details check our A-Z list on the left hand side of this screen.
Electrical goods
Some local organisations also take white goods such as fridges, freezers and washing machines, as well as microwaves and televisions, which can be refurbished where necessary and reused. On our A-Z list we also have organisations that will take desk top pcs.
There are also many other materials that can be taken by various community schemes please check our A-Z list on the left hand side of the screen and select the material you want to put to good use!
Garden Plastic.
To find out how to recycle your unwanted horticultural plastics click here