We are one of the main community furniture reuse projects running in the Highlands.  In addition to supporting people who are experiencing a period of vulnerability with either donated furniture or housing support, this project also has very positive environmental implications.

In line with the move towards a Zero Waste Scotland, one of the aims of the project is to reduce waste production in the Highlands by increasing the opportunity for reuse.

The types of materials we divert from landfill are furniture, electrical and electronic items, textiles, carpets and bric-a-brac although we take anything that can be used to set up a home.  We have in-house engineers testing and repairing electrical items and we also restore furniture in order to maximise reuse.

Last year we successfully diverted over 750 tonnes of these types of household items from landfill. Any items which are not suitable for reuse are recycled wherever possible.   At present we are sourcing new avenues allowing us to reuse and recycle even more of the items we collect.

On a national level, New Start Highland is a member of both the Community Resources Network Scotland (CRNS) and the Furniture Reuse Network (FRN), both of which are concerned with not only recycling but a whole array of activities including reuse, refurbishment, composting, waste prevention, waste education and awareness to name but a few. In addition they serve to promote national awareness of the importance of treating waste as a resource.

Social enterprises such as ourselves successfully demonstrate the importance of a cohesive approach to social and environmental community-based issues. The social issues tackled by us are two-fold; not only do we help provide household items to vulnerable or socially excluded people to enable them to make a house their home; we also provide employment, training and volunteering opportunities to people within our community who have barriers to employment.

We consider ourselves a successful social enterprise that delivers important services within our local area for the benefit of our community, socially, economically and environmentally.