An innovative initiative aimed at improving reuse and recycling has been launched today in Cambridgeshire.
The pilot scheme, called Revive, gives local residents an opportunity to donate their unwanted items – as well as buy secondhand goods – via a dedicated website and on-site “shop”.
The scheme is being trialled by Amey, as part of its partnership with Cambridgeshire County Council, at Witchford Household Recycling Centre. It’s been developed with the support of Amey’s parent company Ferrovial and the Intelligent Infrastructure Centre for Innovation (CI3).
If successful, Revive could be rolled out to other centres across Cambridgeshire.
Amey’s Tom Coleman said: “This is the first time we have offered local residents an online service to donate and buy items. Our aim is to get people to think twice before throwing items away which could be given a good home elsewhere.”
“We’re trying to make it as easy as possible for people to reuse and recycle, rather than items ending up part of household rubbish. We have a dedicated Revive “shop” set up at Witchford, with people able to visit in person as well as use the website - hopefully ensuring we give a new lease of life to many unwanted items.”
Cllr Roger Hickford, Chairman of Highways and Community Infrastructure Committee at Cambridgeshire County Council, said: “In Cambridgeshire we have a fantastic reputation for recycling and reusing as much as we can. Our high recycling rate of 56 per cent is a great reflection of this commitment. ‘Revive’ is wonderful idea to help to make the most of things in our homes which we don’t need any more. I hope the scheme does very well throughout its pilot and we see it rolled out across the rest of Cambridgeshire very soon.”
Witchford, along with the other eight Household Recycling Centres in Cambridgeshire, already offers residents the opportunity to drop off unwanted items, which can then be bought by other people visiting the site.
However, this is the first time that a website has been used by Amey and the council to showcase the items which have been donated for reuse, in turn allowing residents to reserve them via the online site before visiting Witchford to buy them.
As part of the Revive pilot, any items donated and dropped off at Witchford will be logged on the website – www.revivemarketplace.com. Items are displayed on the website in easy-to-follow categories, with the option for other people to then reserve them. Once reserved, residents will have two days to visit the Revive area at Witchford and buy/collect their item.
Categories include furniture, toys, leisure, bathroom, DIY and gardening.
The Revive site also gives residents an option to upload details of their unwanted items themselves. They’ll then need to drop the donated item at Witchford, where it will be verified by the Revive team.
Revive can be used by all residents living in Cambridgeshire County Council’s area.