Novus Blog

Whilst working on a student accommodation refurbishment project in Edinburgh, we saved over 200 items of furniture from going to landfill by donating them to homeless charity Four Square.

The Scope of the Project

Last month saw us complete a summer works programme which involved the refurbishment of a student accommodation block in Edinburgh. Whilst completing the works we removed many items including microwaves, fridges, shelving units, mattresses and office chairs. These items would normally go to a waste transfer station, where they would either be recycled or end up in landfill. To prevent this, we decided to apply the principles of circular economy and donate them to local homeless charity Four Square. Through this strategy, we have reduced waste to a minimum by extending the life cycle of the items while also supporting the local community.

About Four Square

Edinburgh based charity Four Square supports people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. They do an amazing job in helping over 1000 people every year by providing advice, accommodation, and learning and training opportunities. In 2011, they created the Edinburgh Furniture Initiative, where they re-sell donated furniture to help support their charity – we’re proud to have contributed to this initiative with our donations.

Our Environmental Commitments

As a responsible business we are committed to protecting the planet and building a sustainable future. It is through the continuous reduction of our CO2 emissions and eight environmental commitments that we understand the importance of decreasing waste to landfill. The three R’s (reuse, reduce and recycle) play a valuable part in achieving our ambitious sustainability targets, which is why we monitor our waste to landfill and recycling levels via a waste management system. Through recent reports, we are proud to be achieving a 95% diversion rate from landfill.