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Garfield Weston Trust will match fund any public donation.  

For example if you donate £10 Furniture Recycling Project will receive a further £10 in matched funding from The Garfield Weston Trust.  

No donation is too big or too small.  

Your donation will help keep the collection service free and the cost of goods low, so they are affordable to disadvantaged individuals and groups in Gloucestershire.  The average collection cost by councils in the county is £24 for the collection of 3 items.  

Having a furnished home is a basic expectation in our society, but one which can be difficult to achieve if you are on a low income.  Our aim is to help people meet this need without getting themselves into debt.  

We aim to encourage the re-use/recycling concept to households as an alternative to landfill and help combat problems with fly-tipping.  

Each year we supply 11,000 items of furniture and electrical items to the community, collect and deliver to approximately 6,000 properties.  We have a training department for 16-18 year olds; provide volunteer placements and placements to adults with learning disabilities.  

A set amount of funds are allocated for each day. It is on a first come first served basis, so please donate early and help your community benefit.  

All donations need to be made online from 10.00 am Monday 5th 6th and 7th December. Please use the following link to log on and donate: www.thebiggive.org.uk/donate/frp.   

You can find more information and follow us on Furniture Recycling Project (FRP) on Facebook and Twitter.

The Furniture Recycling Project has received a three year grant of £75,000 from the J Paul Getty Jnr Charitable Trust, to offer work placements to young people on their training programme.  The programme is for young people aged 16-18, who attend for two and a half days per week for up to half a year. They spend two days a week gaining practical work experience in one of these placements, all of which are in a real work place environment. Additionally they work towards recognised basic and vocational qualifications, often one-to-one. Bursaries are available to help with the costs of attending the programme.  

The Furniture Recycling Project also offers driving Safely courses (including a provisional driving licence) , CSCS cards, outward bound activities, first aid and fire safety training, employability skills and one-to-one mentoring.  

‘These work placements are great opportunity for young people in Gloucester to improve their maths, English and employability qualifications at the same time as gaining real work place experience. With this and the work skills we provide they can leave the programme with a much improved CV, improved confidence  and relevant work experience  which are essential for gaining employment in these difficult times.’ said Christine Nash, Training Manager and Deputy CEO.  

The Furniture Recycling Project is now enrolling for our training course with work placements. Anyone wishing to find out more should contact Christine Nash or Jan Villis on 01452 524333.

This will initially be trialled in Gloucester with up to 7 collection slots and 7 delivery slots available a day.  This will increase the number of collections and deliveries undertaken by our distribution team to over 230 per week.  

Should the initiative prove to be a success, the intention is expand this service to cover Cheltenham and Gloucester on alternate weeks.  

Andy Barrett FRP Operations Manger says ‘We have over the past twelve months opened our Gloucester and Cheltenham shops to the community which have now proved a great success. The natural progression was to develop our collection and distribution service. We hope that by providing a more convenient service to those who may work or have other commitments during the week that we will encourage more people to donate useable furniture and electrical items to us, which will benefit the whole community, by reducing landfill and promoting re-use’.  

Our collection service runs throughout Gloucestershire and is completely free of charge.  If you would like to donate furniture or electrical item in working order, please contact us on 01452 302303 or 01242 220296 or email, collections@frpglos.org.uk

The Furniture Recycling Project currently has opportunities for 16-18 year old trainees in our electrical department where we repair and test electrical items donated to us that are then sold for a low cost to the disadvantaged community.     

You will be helping in a valuable community service and at the same time, gaining practical work experience in electrical testing and installation skills, be enrolled onto our foundation learning scheme where you can choose the qualifications you need.   

All training is free and you will receive one-to-one support in basic skills, mentoring and you will be offered the opportunity to take part in group activities such as Outward Bound courses.   

If electrics are not for you, we also have vacancies in warehousing, retail, admin and woodwork.    

For further information please contact Jan Villis on 01452 524 333, email learning@frpglos.org.uk or text 07725 421947

The Project runs the Foundation Learning scheme, offering one-to-one tuition in practical skills such as woodwork, electrics, office, retail and warehousing along with help in gaining GCSE-equivalent qualifications in English, Maths and I.T.   Learners also have the opportunity to take part in activities such as outward bound and expeditions including the Tall  Ships.  

There’s no need to wait til September, because the Project offers training to young people age 16-18 all year round and learners can join at any time.  Learners stay for a minimum of six weeks.   

“Our learners work alongside our staff getting a taste of the world of work as well as gaining the qualifications they need to move on to college, an apprenticeship or job,” said Christine Nash, Training Manager.  

Anyone wanting to find out more should contact Christine Nash or Jan Villis on 01452 524333

Mark Teague (17) of Podsmead and Ryan Higgs (16) of Robinswood will be learning the ropes of sailing a yacht on an expedition organised by the Tall Ships Youth Trust.  The boys will be sailing from Portsmouth along the south coast.  

FRP tutor Julie Edmonds organised the opportunity for the two learners, which is being funded by Peter Lang Children’s Trust and a bursary from Tall ships Youth Trust.  “As well as being a great adventure, the Tall Ships expedition is an opportunity for Mark and Ryan to gain confidence and develop their communication, problem solving and team working skills, which is a really important part of what we do at FRP,” said Julie.  

“I have been looking forward to going on the ship for ages,” said Mark.  “I have tried lots of new things at FRP but this is the most exciting.”   

FRP regularly organises extra-curricular and personal development activities for 16-18 year old learners on its Foundation Learning programme, including Outward Bound, Battle Sports, Money Matters, Safe Driving and Drug Awareness.  Youngsters can now gain qualifications in a range of personal development and employability topics and skills.  

Training places for young people are available all year round with a few vacancies now in woodwork, retail, electrical and warehouse/vans.  Anyone interested should call Jan Villis, Course Manager on 01452 524333.

The funds have been used to purchase new state of the art Megger Portable Appliance Testers (PAT) equipment.  Thanks to generous support from the suppliers, Megger Limited we have been able to purchase new equipment with added extras, which will replace our old outdated equipment. This will make it quicker and easier for staff and trainees to test electrical items donated to us to ensure that they are safe to be sold in the shop.  

Ian Ellis, Chief Executive of FRP said ‘The equipment we were using was over six years old and was becoming expensive to maintain. Not only that, with the new regulations on electrical goods, the reporting was having to be done manually, where as with the new equipment, we will be able to download the information, saving time which can be better spent testing the donated items. This new equipment will also make it easier for our trainees to use, giving them more opportunities to learn the testing procedures in a much more user friendly way”.  

Ian adds “For many disadvantaged households owning necessary household items such as washing machines, fridges and cookers is a struggle.  Some make do without and wash their clothes in sinks, don’t refrigerate their food properly or get by living of food that doesn’t require a cooker.  Occasionally people are desperate and buy untested items, putting not only themselves, but others at risk from potentially faulty goods. Others get themselves in debt (interest rates can tend to be high, especially for unemployed etc) just so they can buy what is now too many of us, an everyday necessity.”  

FRP collect’s, tests and supplies at a low cost over 1000 electrical items per year.  These are all items that would otherwise end up in landfill, or in some cases being dumped in developing countries, which is just moving the problem and not seeking a positive solution.  

The demand for these items always outweighs our supply.  We would like to encourage anyone with good quality reusable electrical items they no longer use to donate them to us.  Our collection service runs throughout Gloucestershire and is completely free of charge.  If you would like to donate an electrical item in working order, please contact us on 01452 302303 or 01242 220296 or email, collections@frpglos.org.uk

Volunteers are needed on a regular weekly basis or as relief, to be called on when needed. They will be driving a 3 ½ ton van and supervising a crew of two volunteers or young trainees.  The role will involve transporting furniture around the county, between FRP shops, warehouses and customers’ homes. Safety clothing, travel and meal expenses will be provided.  

The Furniture Recycling Project sells an average of 12,000 items of donated furniture and electrical goods every year, keeping usable items out of landfill and helping local people furnish their homes affordably. It offers volunteer opportunities throughout the organisation and training to young people aged 16 – 18, which includes placements working as crew on FRP’s distribution vans.  

Volunteer Coordinator Annabel Gullett said, “Our distribution team is absolutely crucial to FRP, as they are responsible for transporting all the furniture and electrical items to customers all over the county. One or more volunteer drivers will really help keep our operations as efficient as possible. They will also ensure that our young people and volunteers are able to continue to access their placements each week.”  

Volunteering brings benefits to the individual as well as the community. “There is a great team atmosphere on our vans,” said Annabel. “Volunteers tell me that they feel valued, and part of something that will benefit others. For some, volunteering with FRP is a route into work, and for others it’s a way to get out of the house, meet new people and make a difference.”  

Volunteer drivers must be 25 or over and have a standard driving licence – experience driving vans is desirable but not essential. Volunteers will be asked to complete an enhanced CRB check and to do a driving trial under the supervision of FRP’s lead driver. All those who are interested should contact Annabel on 01452 318973 or download an application form from the website, www.frpglos.org.uk.  

For further information please contact:  

Annabel Gullett, Volunteer Coordinator

01452 318973, volunteering@frpglos.org.uk

The three grants will fund work to care for severely disabled children and their families, a furniture recycling project to benefit low-income households and the completion of a Scout building and camping site.

Mark Cotton, Big Lottery Fund Head of Region for South West, said: “These grants awarded today are made through BIG’s Reaching Communities programme, which aims to improve the lives of communities and people most in need. These three projects are great examples of what our funding is trying to achieve, helping people in their communities facing disadvantage and making a positive impact within their local areas.”

Working across the whole of Gloucestershire, the Furniture Recycling Project is being awarded £294,959 to fund the project Furniture Reuse Distribution (FRED). The project recycles unwanted furniture and distributes it to households in the Gloucestershire area at minimal cost.  The scheme benefits people who are on low-incomes, are elderly or disabled and who may otherwise not be able to afford essential furniture and household items.

The Furniture Recycling Project, also offers training, work experience and volunteering opportunities at FRED for young people aged 16 – 18 years old and unemployed adults, providing them with skills and improving their future employment opportunities. 

Ian Ellis, Chief Executive, Furniture Recycling Project, said: “The Project has developed significantly during its lifetime and this new Lottery funding will enable us to continue to improve our activities for the benefit of our community.

“There are still many people in our community who struggle for the most basic of furniture that many of us take for granted. This project will address many of these needs, whilst also offering the added benefit of offering work experience and training to many.”

FRED also prevents unwanted and used furniture from ending up as landfill waste, therefore benefitting the environment and people who donate items are able to dispose of their unwanted items and have them collected at no cost. 

Big Lottery Fund Press Office: 020 7211 1888
Out of hours contact: 07867 500 572
Public Enquiries Line: 08454 102030
Textphone: 0845 6021 659
Full details of the Big Lottery Fund programmes and grant awards are available on the website: www.biglotteryfund.org.uk