Nottinghamshire County Council and Veolia, its waste and recycling partner, are celebrating ten years of their Community RePaint scheme, and it seems fitting that similar to a wedding anniversary the 10th year is tin! The celebrations have been delayed by a year due to the pandemic.

The county council first joined the Community RePaint Network in June 2011 and operates a paint reuse scheme at four recycling centres. Nottinghamshire residents can drop off their leftover paint (providing they are registered to use Nottinghamshire County Council’s Recycling Centres), and  recycling centre staff will prevent good quality, reusable paint from going to disposal. The paint is then redistributed to individuals, charities and community groups for free, to help brighten homes and community spaces.

Since its start, Community RePaint Nottinghamshire has prevented over 69,000 litres of paint from going to disposal – that’s enough to repaint the Trent Bridge seven times! This has coloured the lives of over 110,000 people in the Nottinghamshire County Council area and equates to a saving of 186,300kg CO2e – that’s the same as a petrol car driving around the entire circumference of the Earth 27 times.

Community RePaint Nottinghamshire Site staff and children from a local school who have benefited from the scheme

 

Councillor Neil Clarke MBE, Cabinet Member for Transport and Environment at Nottinghamshire County Council said: “It’s amazing that something as simple as reusing paint, which would otherwise go to waste, has such a huge impact on emissions. What’s even better is that so many organisations and individuals in Nottinghamshire have directly benefited from the scheme – from brightening up a child’s bedroom to painting an entire church.”

 Lea Hawkes, General Manager for Veolia Nottinghamshire said: “We’re delighted to provide such a valuable service for the people of Nottinghamshire. The fact that we’ve been in operation for over ten years is testament to its success. The booking process is straightforward and collecting paint from any of our four participating sites is easy.”

If you are a householder within Nottinghamshire County Council (excluding Nottingham) and have leftover paint in your home that you would like to be reused, you can drop your paint off at the following recycling centres: Warsop, Calverton, Newark and Beeston. Remember, you must be a registered site user to take any unwanted paint to our sites – to register please visit: https://www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/waste-and-recycling/recycling-centres/using-our-recycling-centres/register

Community RePaint Nottinghamshire Cake celebrationsA cake baked to celebrate the 10 year anniversary

Those who have benefited from the scheme include:

Mansfield District Child’s Protection Team – Nina Middleton, Assistant Social Worker: “I collect paint to give to the families that I work with. Very often they struggle with finances and paint is often out of reach to their budget. Providing paint from this free service is absolutely vital in improving standards for our vulnerable children.”

Southwell Methodist Church – Paul Birks, Resource Team Leader: “This scheme has been instrumental in improving the condition of our Church. I have been able to update the old facade, which dates back to 1839, and also refresh much of the interiors.”

Bleasby Primary School – Angela Bradbury, School Governor, explained: “The paint from your scheme came in very handy when we organised a DIY weekend to refresh a few tired areas in our school grounds. The guy who helped us pick our paint was really helpful which made the process so easy. We have lots of pupils who are enthusiastic about environmental issues and sustainability so it’s great to put these ideas into practice.”

Please note: surplus paint from traders is not accepted at any of the Community RePaint schemes or any of the County’s Recycling Centres. If you are a business with leftover paint, click here.

If you need paint to redecorate your home, or if you are a charity or community group in need of paint for a project, you can visit any of the 4 named recycling centres – to do this, you need to book a slot online https://www.veolia.co.uk/nottinghamshire/Paint

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