Imperial students donate tonnes of goods to charity

Imperial has partnered with the British Heart Foundation to collect over five tonnes of goods to sell in the Foundation's charity shops.

Imperial’s Estates Facilities and Residential Services divisions have been working in partnership to promote Student Re-use Schemes since 2009, organising the collection of both food and household items which are no longer wanted by students moving out of halls at the end of the academic year – and which would otherwise have been thrown away. This year, a new approach was taken in order to make sure as much as possible was reused. 

The College worked with the British Heart Foundation (BHF), who organised collection of unwanted clothing, books and crockery from dedicated collection points set up at Imperial’s student halls. Over five tonnes of material were donated to be sent to the BHF’s charity shops, with an estimated value of £8,800.

Emmaus volunteers with the food donation

Alongside this, boxes were left in student kitchens for non-perishable food items and unwanted cutlery, which a team of student volunteers helped to collect. A total of 1.7 tonnes of food and 0.14 tonnes of re-usable cutlery was donated to the charity Emmaus, which works with formerly homeless people. 

Greg Davidson, Business Manager at Emmaus Colchester, said: “We’re delighted Imperial College have seen our dedication towards recycling and reuse, choosing our charity to donate tonnes of food and saving it from going to waste. 

“Many of our companions have a strong interest in cooking, wishing to pursue it as a career. We provide training in food hygiene and cooking to all of our companions and this donation will allow us to continue this, helping equip companions with the vital skills they need in order for them to progress in the future.”

Helen Swanton, Waste and Recycling Officer at Imperial, said: “This is the first year that we have worked with the British Heart Foundation and Emmaus on this scheme, and it is great to see such a large amount of good-quality items go to such worthy charities. I would like to thank all the students that donated so generously and the student volunteers who helped to make this operation such a huge success.”