Encouraging users to become reusers

Far too many goods get thrown away just because people want to move on to the next thing. These perfectly serviceable items can be reused if only there was a process for them to be put back into circulation.

Resource Futures carries out a lot of work in this area, communicating the benefits to the environment of reusing rather than recycling or simply throwing away.

We also support others in this field, such as:

  • Local  Action Groups to increase  awareness of waste issues and increase the amount of ‘waste’ that we reuse. For instance, in Oxfordshire we support the local communicty action groups to hold an annual county-wide swap-shop day
     
  • Community RePaint, managed by us, provides an innovative solution to the 56 million litres of paint left unused in the UK each year. Surplus paint from retailers, householders, and painting and decorating companies is passed on to charities, voluntary organisations and community groups, for decorating premises such as village halls or youth clubs

Bulky waste? We can shoulder the load.

Another area where we have experience is in the reuse of bulky waste, such as furniture or white goods. In fact our expertise in this area has informed national good practice guidelines and helped local authorities to manage their bulky waste effectively. We have provided consultancy support to nearly twenty local authorities, covering many important aspects of bulky waste management, such as:

  • Assessing the costs and benefits of operating different types of bulky waste services
     
  • Ensuring your bulky waste collections are used effectively
     
  • Increasing awareness of how bulky waste collections contribute to your recycling targets
  • Assessing the percentage of reusable and recyclable waste, and the numbers and tonnage of different types of items in the bulky waste stream
  • Complying with new legislation that affects bulky waste

  

Case Studies

Reducing energy use in Bristol schools

Resource Futures worked in partnership with Bristol City Council, Green Path Solutions and Sustainable Redland to help Bristol Primary schools reduce their energy usage.  The key messages were why saving energy is so important to help the environment and save money and how everyone can do their bit to help. 

Bulky Waste Guidance

Resource Futures was contracted by WRAP to develop Bulky Waste Guidance for Local Authorities in association with Caroline Lee-Smith. The guidance updated the original toolkit “Bulky Waste Collections; Maximising Reuse and Recycling - A Step by Step Guide” which provides ideas and identifies opportunities to increase the amount of household bulky waste that is reused and recycled. 

Devon Composting in Schools project

The Devon Composting in Schools project, delivered by Resource Futures, was possibly the biggest schools' food waste composting programme in the country, involving over 80 Devon primary and secondary schools.

News and Events

Oxfordshire community food waste initiative is runner-up in EWWR awards

DinnerTime, the community kitchen initiative delivered by Resource Futures’ Community Action Groups (CAG) Project in Oxfordshire, was runner-up in the European Week for Waste Reduction (EWWR) Awards – the only event from the UK that made the finals.

Community Action goes from strength to strength in Oxfordshire

Resource Futures’ Community Action Groups (CAGs) project met or exceeded all of its targets to support community-led climate change action in Oxfordshire in 2012/13.

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