Lintel Trust, Scotland’s housing association charity, is piloting a new initiative Reduce, Reuse and Raise Funds with six housing associations in Glasgow. This project seeks to place textile recycling banks in your area to raise money for your local community projects and encourage recycling.

Textiles are the UK’s fastest growing household waste stream. By reusing and recycling textiles we can greatly reduce the amount we send to landfill and give unwanted items a new lease of life. Taking part in sustainable initiatives can help reduce your organisation’s carbon footprint whilst supporting local community projects through raising funds for Lintel Trust.

How to get involved

Lintel Trust have partnered with Clyde Recycling for this initiative. They have over 30 years of industry leading experience in the recycling and distribution of donated clothes.

Housing associations looking to get involved in the project will need to get in touch with Kate Christie at Lintel Trust, see contact details at the end of this article. Once you have been approved you will receive a Lintel Trust branded recycling bank to be placed in an accessible community area. You will also be provided with promotional material to let your residents know about the facility and how it will benefit the community.

Further, as part of the wider project Lintel Trust have partnered with Rags to Riches, a social enterprise based at Govanhill Baths. They can provide an introductory workshop in your area offering ideas and solutions for a more sustainable relationship with textiles in your community.

The cleaning, maintenance and emptying of the clothing banks will be the responsibility of Clyde Recycling so there is very little upkeep for your busy organisations. You will be provided with a direct number to reach Clyde Recycling should the bank be full or damaged and they will respond the same working day.

What Happens to the Donations?

Clothing is taken to Clyde Recycling’s modern sorting facility where it is sorted, labelled, and exported.

Good quality clothing is distributed to well established partners in Europe, Africa, and South America for resale. Clothing and textiles that are not fit for resale are washed and repurposed as cleaning clothes and mop heads.

The textiles are measured per tonne and Lintel Trust receives £220/tonne for clothes donated via the recycling banks. The money raised by the banks stays within your community and will allow Lintel Trust to give out small grants up to £1,000 to your local charitable groups so they can improve lives in your area.

The application process will be a very simple and can be done online on the Lintel Trust website. Grant awards are made on a quarterly basis.

Contact Lintel Trust at enquiries@linteltrust.org.uk to register your interest in the recycling banks and they will be in touch to put arrangements in place before April 2022.