All new High Wycombe reuse shop reopens in time to celebrate 10 years of delivering social value to the community
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The much-loved reuse shop in High Heavens household recycling centre, run by South Bucks Hospice in partnership with FCC Environment and Buckinghamshire Council, celebrated 10 years of being open last weekend by unveiling a brand new, purpose built retail space on the High Wycombe site which will improve dramatically the shopping experience for the public and working environment for the staff. South Bucks Hospice, FCC Environment and Buckinghamshire Council opened two reuse shops in 2012, one in High Wycombe and one in Aston Clinton. Since opening, the two shops have sold 3,572 tonnes of items between them. In 2021 alone, High Wycombe sold 382 tonnes of reusable items. The Aston Clinton reuse shop also celebrated with a tenth anniversary tea party, all served on vintage donated crockery. The aim of the shops is to make an environmental difference by reusing items that still have life left in them rather than simply disposing of them - literally to stop useful items going to waste. But most importantly, South Bucks Hospice benefits from the proceeds of the shop and this assists them in supporting patients with life-limiting or life-threatening illness. Gareth Williams, Buckinghamshire Council’s Cabinet Member for Climate Change and Environment commented: “The reuse shops at High Heavens and Aston Clinton are a great asset to our household recycling centre service. Not only does it make environmental sense to reuse things where possible, but the reuse shops are also exciting places to visit to find interesting and unusual bargains – and at the same time every purchase supports the wonderful work of the South Bucks Hospice. And with the newly refurbished shop now open at High Heavens, there’s even more reason to visit!” James Reseigh, Buckinghamshire Household Recycling Centre Contract Manager at FCC Environment said: “We are delighted to be celebrating this milestone and to have done so much over the years to drive down waste and drive up proceeds for our charity partner. But we are not stopping there, we are busy bringing pop-up reuse shops to all areas of the county as well as innovative repair cafes, so we urge residents to keep an eye out for some new ways of joining Buckinghamshire’s reuse revolution.” Jackie Ward, Chief Executive Officer of South Bucks Hospice said: "We are so excited at the improvement to our much-loved shop. We want to thank our partners at FCC Environment and Buckinghamshire Council for making this possible, and I want to thank our wonderful staff for their hard work in making this shop such a success story. I am so pleased they will have such a great new modern shop to work in and we look forward to developing this." She added: "Our team at Aston Clinton also do a marvellous job, serving the public, the hospice and our partner organisations so well. This shop is also a remarkable success story and we are very proud to have been involved from the start. We are also enormously grateful for the large amount of money this shop has raised to support our patients." If you are keen to see what kind of bargains you might find, while helping the environment and the local community, do visit!
Donations are welcome, and can be made at any of the nine household recycling centres across Buckinghamshire.
Left to right: Jackie Ward (Chief Executive Officer, South Bucks Hospice) Cassie Webster (Materials Manager, FCC Environment) Mike Stass (Area Manager, FCC Environment) James Reseigh (Recycling Centres Contract Manager, FCC Environment) Konrad Wysocki (Area Supervisor for Recycling Centres Contract, FCC Environment) Steve Longdon (Operations Director, FCC Environment) Cllr Gareth Williams (Cabinet Member for Climate Change & Environment, Buckinghamshire Council) Ellie Powell (Waste Prevention Officer, Buckinghamshire Council) Maurice Buchanan (Retail staff, South Bucks Hospice) Adrian Clarke (Head of Municipal Treatment, FCC Environment) Jagoda Parry (Retail Area Manager, South Bucks Hospice) Gemma Green (Reuse Manager, FCC Environment)
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