Free For All Community Recycling Ltd are celebrating the 20th year of their Community RePaint scheme, having first opened their doors to paint reuse in 2002.
Staff and volunteers from Community RePaint North Allerdale have been collecting paint that would otherwise have gone for disposal and redistributed it to individuals, charities and community groups at affordable prices to help brighten homes and community spaces.
Although a small scheme in a rural part of the country, in the past 10 years alone the scheme has prevented more than 35,000 litres of paint from going to waste. This has brightened the lives of over 43,000 lives in North Allerdale and surrounding communities.
Community RePaint North Allerdale is part of the UK wide Community RePaint network, a network of paint reuse schemes working to solve the issue of the estimated 50 million litres of paint that go to waste in the UK each year. In 2021, the schemes in the network collected 387,748 litres of paint from individuals, retailers, decorators and manufacturers, and redistributed 255,785 litres of paint to individuals, families, community groups and charities, adding colour to the lives of over 176,000 people.
“The aim of celebrating our birthday is not only to mark this important milestone, but also to raise awareness of the scheme locally so more people can benefit,” said scheme owners Kath and Dennis Graham. “Community RePaint North Allerdale offers a simple, local solution to the problem of waste paint. By reusing leftover paint in our community, we can bring a splash of colour to the lives of those who need it the most and help to protect the planet by preventing perfectly good paint from being disposed of.”
The Community RePaint network manager, Martin Pearse, reflected “Community RePaint North Allerdale have done a fantastic job over the last 20 years. The celebrations provide a great opportunity to recognise all the hard work that has gone into making the scheme such a success and to reflect on all their achievements which has brightened community spaces and homes over the years. We are excited to continue supporting the scheme and look forward to seeing what they accomplish in years to come.”
If you need paint to redecorate your home, or if you are a charity or community group in need of paint for a project, call Community RePaint North Allerdale to find out more 07504 929313, or visit them during their opening hours to purchase paint. They are based at Old Slaughter House, Water Street, Wigton, Cumbria, CA7 9AR. They are open Wednesday, Friday & Saturday 8.30am – 12 noon.
If you are a trader, manufacturer or retailer with leftover paint you can contact the scheme to find out how they can help you.
