Big boost for recycling in Norfolk as county's largest reuse shop officially opens its doors today

Norfolk's largest reuse shop officially opens today at the county's biggest recycling centre.

The 116 square metre reuse shop at the Norwich North recycling centre is set to help give more than a hundred tonnes of good quality second-hand items a new home every year.

Cllr Andy Grant, Norfolk County Council Cabinet Member for Environment and Waste, said: "Quite simply Norfolk's reuse shops cut waste. We are all increasingly mindful of the impact we as consumers have on the planet so I'm very proud that since the county council opened our first reuse shop at King's Lynn recycling centre in 2008 the shops have helped prevent up to 1000 tonnes of quality second-hand items from being thrown away every year. I'd urge people to come along and browse, or donate, and you never know what bargains you may find!"

The reuse shop complements the new Norwich North recycling centre which first opened to the public in September 2021.

The County Council's reuse shops welcome donations of good quality second-hand pieces and sell these on at car boot prices. Helping to give things a new home reduces the amount of unwanted items going to waste and the income from sales in the shops helps to offset the cost of providing the recycling centre service.

Cllr Dan Roper, County Councillor for the Hevingham and Spixworth Division (where the new recycling centre is located), said: "This excellent new reuse shop is set to further support efforts of local people to reuse and recycle even more. I'd like to thank the recycling team and site staff for their great work on this project, and I'm sure the chance to bag a bargain while giving an unwanted item a new home is going to prove very popular."

Since April 2018 Norfolk's reuse shops have been donating a proportion of their income to the current chosen charity, the East Anglian Air Ambulance.

All of Norfolk's 20 recycling centres are operated by Norse Environmental Waste Services (NEWS), part of the Norse Group.

NEWS Operations Director, Dave Newell, said: "Norse is always pleased to do all it can to help protect the environment and so we are thrilled to see the opening of the new reuse shop at the Norwich North recycling centre. Encouraging people to reuse unwanted items is an essential part of the drive to minimise waste and raising money for charity at the same time just makes this all the more worthwhile."

For more information on reuse shops, and to find the location and opening times of this, and all Norfolk's reuse shops, visit: www.norfolk.gov.uk/reuseshop

Further information

The opening of the Norwich North reuse shop means that fifteen of Norfolk's network of 20 recycling centres now have a reuse shop:

Ashill, Bergh Apton, Caister, Dereham, Heacham, Hempton, King's Lynn, Mayton Wood, Norwich North, Norwich South (new reuse shop opening soon), Snetterton, Strumpshaw, Thetford, Wells-next-the-Sea, Wereham.

Other recycling centre improvements

• The Norwich North and Norwich South recycling centres both opened in 2021 providing improved facilities for the growing Greater Norwich area. They replaced the former smaller sites at Mile Cross and Ketteringham
• Relocating the sites at Sheringham and Wymondham to increase the size of these sites to improve recycling and access onto these popular recycling centres
• It is hoped to make improvements to the site at Morningthorpe (near Long Stratton) to increase the size of this site, or relocate it, to improve recycling and access onto this popular recycling centre