Green Gown Awards 2014 - Social Responsibility - Newcastle University - Finalist

The big clear out!

Accommodation and Hospitality Services within Newcastle University have developed links with charities within the local community resulting in our campaign THE BIG CLEAR OUT!

Focusing on the end of tenancy for each University accommodation site, students are encouraged to participate in donating items no longer required to locally based charities thereby reducing landfill.

The two charities with whom the University is in partnership are St Oswald’s Hospice and Changing Lives which endeavour to use the items given in their original form.

2013 saw the initiative grow to encompass Foodbanks, part of the Trussell Trust Group making links with the local West End Foodbank. Students dropped off all unopened tins, packets and jars at reception areas where they were collected and taken to the Foodbank for distribution.

4,000 students were involved enabling the University to donate 1 tonne of food, making the University of Newcastle West End Foodbank’s largest donator second only to Tesco.

Top 3 learnings

1 An awareness of how unwanted items are best processed
2 Everything has a reusable value
3 Strong community links have been established through this project.

Videos

• The big clear out! (click to hide)