APDO - SPRING CLEARING WEEK - 22 to 28 march 2021!
8 easy ways to clear your clutter!
The days are getting longer, winter is drawing to a close, and it’s beginning to feel a lot like Spring, which can mean only one thing – APDO’S SPRING CLEARING WEEK 2021 is here!!
This year the focus is on making clutter count - doing something positive with your unwanted items! So let’s look at some constructive ways to dispose of your clutter including how and where to donate, recycle or sell your pre loved things.
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I know from experience how daunting decluttering can be, and how easily things accumulate, especially after spending almost a year with limited access to the usual recycling facilities due to lockdown. These are really easy ways to RECYCLE, DONATE and DISPOSE of your excess - and many of them are collections that can be organised from the comfort of your own home!
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I am focusing on what we can do in our local area of North West London, but some of these suggestions are available throughout the UK, so … I hope that these tips on how to make good use of your unwanted stuff might even make it an exciting and rewarding process!
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1. RECYCLE …
If you live anywhere near Kentish Town – Highgate, Hampstead, Belsize Park, Dartmouth Park, Tuffnell Park, Camden Town - the closest Reuse and Recycling Centre (RRC) for domestic disposal, is at Regis Rd, Kentish Town, NW5 3EW. Tel 020 3620 4026.
Regis Road RRC accept a wide range of items for recycling and reuse, including textiles/clothes, batteries/car batteries, fridges and freezers, TVs and monitors, mobile phones and small electrical appliances, books, paper, mixed plastics, scrap metal, bikes, glass, water based paints, etc…
They will also take Furniture, which is sent to the “Second Time Around Reuse Shop” at the Waltham Forest RRC – where the items are sold at affordable prices and will definitely be appreciated by someone else!
Due to the current Covid-19 restrictions, you MUST book a slot in advance and you can do so following this link: https://www.camden.gov.uk/reuse-and-recycling-centre .
Regis Road RRC is really organised, there is a height restriction for cars though, so check that out before you go!
2. DONATE …
• Clothing, Shoes & Accessories
If you have managed to clear out your wardrobes and have clothes, shoes, or accessories to dispose of, the company www.icollectclothes.co.uk offers a fantastic collection service. All you have to do is book a date online and leave your donations in bags outside your home on the day of collection. You can also call them on 0344 879 4417. Items need to be in good condition as they are for re-sale.
I Collect Clothes currently has 6 charity partners and makes a donation of £200 to your chosen charity for every tonne of clothes collected on their behalf. They will also collect linen, bedding, towels, soft toys, electronics, small domestic appliances, books, DVD’s and CD’s.
This may not be as profitable for charities as a direct delivery or donation, but the service is very efficient and is operating during lockdown!
•bOOKS, cd’S, dvd’S & games…
If you have cleared your shelves of unwanted books, CD’s and DVD’s here’s a brilliant way of ensuring they go to a good home, or final resting place:
Ziffit.com, is part of the circular economy, which means no product they touch is sent to landfill. They are a B Corp. and, as a sustainable company, either re-sell or recycle every single item that comes into their hands.
They provide an easy way for consumers to trade in old books, CD’s, DVD’s and games which when processed can be resold through World of Books and other platforms, donated to good causes or responsibly re-cycled.
You can choose whether to trade your books etc. for cash (and make yourself a bit of money!) or whether you wish to donate the value of your items to a charity, as long as it has registered with Virgin Money Giving. It really is super simple!
Once you have separated any books, CD’s, DVD’s or games you no longer want, all you have to do is download the free Ziffit App on to your phone and scan the item’s barcode (If it does not have a barcode it is not an item they will accept), package the items up and arrange for their free courier collection (if you have more than 5KG worth of items), or drop off at a Collect+ store, and wait for it all to be processed.
Your money is then paid to your bank account, by cheque or via paypal, or donated to the charity of choice. Find out more here: https://www.ziffit.com/en-gb/about-us
•for babies & children up to 5 …
Little Village is a wonderful initiative in London - like a food bank but for young families in need of support - you can donate pre-loved clothes, toys, and kit for babies and children up to age 5, as long as they are in excellent condition, and Little Village will gift your items to local families dealing with challenging circumstances such as homelessness, unemployment, low wages and domestic violence.
Little Village has Hubs in Camden, Southwark and Wandsworth and you can find out more about how to donate here: https://littlevillagehq.org/donate-stuff/
• furniture & household items …
Bright Sparks is a Reuse and Repair Social Enterprise project working with local authorities in North and East London to divert reusable second hand furniture and household items such as fridges, freezers, washing machines, driers, small electrical goods, bric-a-brac and crockery from landfill.
By doing this they provide jobs and experience for local people, volunteering experience for individuals looking to get back into work, and purposeful activities for socially excluded individuals.
Valuable skills gained by members of the Bright Sparks team include customer service, stock taking, shop maintenance, administration, sorting/testing/cleaning electrical goods, manual handling of items, data entry, social media marketing, and digital photography.
All the reusable items are cleaned, tested, repaired if necessary, and distributed to locals through their outlets in Islington, Waltham Forest or Newham.
Their usual bulky items collection service is currently suspended due to Covid-19, but it is normally available in the boroughs of Camden, Hackney, Haringey, Islington, Newham and Waltham Forest. You can find out more about how to book when they re-start collections here: https://brightsparksonline.com/pages/donate
3. dispose … collection services
If items are not in a condition to be re-used, recycled or sold, and waste disposal is unavoidable try these suggestions …
Household hazardous waste, including oil based paints, asbestos and chemicals, can be responsibly disposed of using the City of London Household Hazardous Waste Collection service which is available in North West London, and most London Boroughs. You can call them on 020 7332 3433 or apply for a collection online via this link: https://cityoflondon-self.achieveservice.com/service/Request_Hazardous_Waste_Collection
If you have bulky items to dispose of – beds, mattresses, sofas etc - you can book a Bulky Waste collection with Camden council by calling Veolia on 020 3567 8105. You will need to give them your address, details of what is being collected and when you would like it collected. There is a charge for this service which starts at £25 for up to 5 items, although, if you are a Camden resident aged over 65 or receive the maximum Council Tax Support, you can have 2 free collections a year.
If you have difficult to handle and/or bulky waste Electrical items – fridges, freezers, air conditioning units etc. – and you live in the North London Boroughs of Camden, Barnet, Enfield, Islington or Waltham Forest, you can book a free collection with Clearabee online via this link: https://www.clearabee.co.uk/free-weee-kerbside-service . You can call them on 0330 088 1085.
Clearabee also offers private general waste collection services (for a fee), from man-with-a-van to skip hire, and 95% of the rubbish they collect is diverted from landfill. They are a carbon neutral company with good environmental credentials so worth considering if you are in need of more help!
By the way – both of these Bulky Waste collection services are kerbside only! They won’t come in to your home to collect so you need to be able to get the items out and leave them in a responsible, safe and accessible place!
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We hope these inspiring ways to deal with things that are no longer wanted, or needed, motivate you to join us in next week’s Spring Clearing!! Once your space has been cleared I guarantee you will feel happier and more productive – and remember, CLEARING before CLEANING will make life easier - start small but give it a go!
