Reduce or reuse your waste at home

Furniture

Ten million items of furniture are thrown away every year. Many of these could be used again by someone else.

Buying new furniture for your home can be very expensive. Young couples and people on low incomes setting up home for the first time, can find it particularly difficult on a limited budget.

You can buy furniture from reuse shops that is in good condition and a different style or colour to brand new furniture.

Buying furniture from a reuse shop is also quicker than waiting for delivery of a new item.

Furniture reuse projects

In West London there are four charities that accept unwanted furniture.

• Furnish (Brent and Ealing)
• Hounslow Furniture Recycling Project (Brent, Ealing and Hounslow)
• Richmond Furniture Project (Richmond council area only)
• Trinity (Hillingdon, Harrow and Ealing)

You can also buy furniture from the Hounslow, Richmond and Trinity projects.

Your questions answered

Why won’t they take everything?

It is important that the furniture can be reused again so it needs to be complete and safe. You will be asked questions to find out what condition your furniture is in before you can donate the item.

Remember that the furniture is going to a new home. If it isn’t fit for purpose someone could be hurt or pay money for an item that won’t last.

Why are fire regulations labels important?

Sofas and beds need to have a fire regulation label to be accepted at a furniture reuse project. The label proves that the furniture material has been treated to make it harder to catch fire. If there is no label your furniture cannot be reused by anyone else because it could help a fire spread in a home.

Is there a charge to collect my furniture?

Some of the projects will charge a small amount or ask for a donation to help cover their costs.

What happens to furniture I donate?

Your donated furniture will be made available to individuals and families on low incomes. Some furniture projects are open to everyone but priority is given to those who need it most.

Can I buy furniture from the reuse projects?

You can buy furniture from the Hounslow link, Richmond link and Trinity projects.

What happens to the furniture collected by the Council as bulky waste?

We are looking at ways to increase reuse from the council collections but we’re not able to reuse furniture at the moment.

What happens to the furniture I take to my local waste site?

At some of the sites your furniture is put aside for reuse but not all sites have enough space to do this. Ask at your local site.

If you are a Brent resident, small items of wooden furniture will be separated for reuse at the waste site on Abbey Road. Brent Council are working with Furnish web link to get this furniture reused by people who need it.