Resource Futures nominated for two 2025 National Recycling Awards

Resource Futures has been recognised for advancing circularity and data innovation in the recycling and resource management sector with a nomination in two of the 2025 MRW National Recycling Awards categories. 

Planning a circular future for London

The nomination in the Digital Innovation: Data or Automation Breakthrough category spotlights Resource Futures’ collaboration with ReLondon on the London Household Waste Data Model – a pioneering tool designed to transform urban waste intelligence and support London’s transition to a low-carbon, circular city.

The model draws on previous waste composition data from more than 17,000 households across 30 boroughs, while also integrating sources such as census data, housing projections and deprivation indices. This comprehensive approach enables detailed planning and forecasting that accounts for housing growth trends and upcoming policy shifts, including Simpler Recycling, deposit return schemes, and broader circular economy initiatives.

With the ability to forecast resource flows up to 2050, the model offers a game-changing solution for evidence-based waste and recycling strategies.

“It’s fantastic to see the industry acknowledging the potential of a tool we believe will enable cities to make smarter waste management decisions,” says Gwen Frost, Director at Resource Futures. “It doesn’t just track London’s annual household waste; it acts as a dynamic waste intelligence tool that empowers ReLondon and its partner authorities to proactively plan services, anticipate challenges, and develop targeted interventions – making it a cornerstone of London’s circular future.”

Embedding circularity within the paint sector

Nominated in the Circular Economy Initiative: Reuse and Redistribution category – for the second year running – is Community RePaint, the UK’s flagship paint reuse programme, and the only one operating at this scale.

Managed by Resource Futures and funded by Dulux, Community RePaint diverts surplus paint destined for landfill or incineration, reutilises it through reuse and remanufacturing, and redistributes it at affordable prices through a growing member network. To date, more than six million litres of paint have been redistributed through the programme, while in 2024, the network redistributed more than 366,500 litres of paint, brightening 356,800 lives.

The programme exemplifies the benefits of a circular economy on a nationwide scale – preventing the environmentally harmful disposal of paint and reutilising it as an asset that benefits communities and households alike.

“This nomination celebrates the thousands of litres of paint that didn’t go to waste, and the thousands of lives that were brightened instead,” says Charlie Eddisford, Communities Lead at Resource Futures. “Community RePaint is the circular economy for paint in practice, with a functional, scalable circular business model, and strong cross-sector buy-in from manufacturers to community users. It delivers both environmental impact by reclaiming valuable resources and social impact by improving access to affordable paint.”

About the National Recycling Awards

Hosted by publisher EMAP, the MRW National Recycling Awards honours sector innovation and sustainability achievements across categories including food waste, packaging circularity, and social value.

The winners will be announced in a ceremony taking place on 25th November 2025 in London.