Revolutionary Reuse Drop Off Centre – NOW OPEN

Reuse Drop off Centre at Swanton Road, Norwich opened on 8th June 2022.

The former Household Waste Recycling Centre at Swanton Road, Norwich has been reopened by site owners FCC Environment in partnership with The Benjamin Foundation as a revolutionary reuse drop off centre; helping to breathe new life into second hand items, avoiding waste going to landfill, creating social value and raising funds for charity.

The drop off centre opened on 8^th June giving residents a place to bring items otherwise intended for the “tip” to have a second chance in life. The items will be sorted by our charity and sold in our shops in Norfolk, including in our store on Oak Street in Norwich, to raise vital funds for the work we do helping children, young people and families across Norfolk and Suffolk to overcome big challenges in their lives.

FCC Environment will also be partnering with Precycle, one of the largest multi-material recyclers in Europe that focuses on the reuse of materials entering the waste stream who will take any items that meet our reuse acceptance criteria, but is deemed not suitable for the local charity shop.

“This is a first for the area and for the partners involved” said Liam Bould, Regional Development Manager for major waste firm and site operator FCC Environment who are looking to reopen the site to support the local community. “We have operated reuse collection points across a number of our household waste recycling facilities that we operate for local authorities across the UK  and as a result we know the public hate seeing good reusable items go to waste. But we all lead busy lives so opening up a drop off centre means members of the public will be able to bring good quality donations for The Benjamin Foundation to Swanton Road if it works better for them geographically.”

The site, which closed in October 2021 will be run by FCC Environment in partnership with The Benjamin Foundation and Precycle. The facility is large and offers easy access to the public to bring reuse donations particularly larger items such as furniture, TVs, White Goods,  sports equipment, kids toys, Bikes, books, electrical items and usable bric-a-brac.

Paul Sinclair, Operations Manager at The Benjamin Foundation said: “The Benjamin Foundation has been helping to support local vulnerable children and young people for over 25 years. We are seeing an increase in demand for our services in all areas following the pandemic and, with the growing cost of living, this is likely to further increase.”

Paul continues: “Through our stores, we strive to ensure items which can be re-used are found a new home, reach some of those most in need and help to fund our work across Norfolk and Suffolk. We are delighted to be part of this new initiative alongside FCC Environment and Precycle. By bringing pre-loved, reusable items to the Swanton Road site, people really can have a direct impact on improving the lives of vulnerable young people in our local communities.”

Taskeen Ahmed, Director at Precycle said: “Precycle creates and grows business models enabling the reuse of products vs recycling or disposal, driving sustainability. The majority of carbon emitted during a product’s life-cycle comes from the manufacturing processes. Promoting re-use therefore has an out-size impact on reducing carbon emissions. Established in 1999, Precycle diverts over 700 tons of material each week for reuse, dealing in a wide range of items including clothing, shoes, books, household items and electronics. We are delighted to be working with FCC Environment on this project which really will bring reuse to life.”

The site will be open 09:00 to 16:00 Wednesday to Sunday with the exception of Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Year’s Day.

For the latest news and updates follow Norwich Reuse Drop Off o Facebook or visit https://swantonreuse.fccenvironment.co.uk/ for more information including a list of accepted items.