£220,000 awarded to Greater Manchester groups through Renew Community Fund

A Stockport project has been awarded £20,000 as part of £220,000 of grants from Greater Manchester’s Renew Community Fund, which supports initiatives to keep household items in use for longer.

Restocked CIC in Stockport was one of 20 projects to benefit from the latest round of funding. Since 2021, the Renew Community Fund has awarded a total of £1.1 million to 110 local projects that have encouraged city-region residents to recycle, fix, mend, borrow, and share items, helping to keep these items in use, minimise waste and generate wider social benefits.

The annual Renew Community fund comes from the sale of preloved household items in a joint initiative by Recycle for Greater Manchester (R4GM) and waste contractor SUEZ recycling and recovery UK (SUEZ). The items are collected at the recycling centres across Greater Manchester, before being cleaned and repaired for resale in three Renew Shops located at centres in Oldham, Trafford (pictured, during a visit from Mayor Andy Burnham earlier this year) and Salford, as well as through an eBay store and online shop. The fund is managed by the Greater Manchester Environment Trust (GMET), the UK’s first regional environmental impact fund.

The fund received a record number of applications with a total of 113 projects bidding for funding, almost 50% more than in the previous round. The successful projects will use a range of techniques to engage with their local communities.

In Stockport, Restocked CIC will use their £20,000 grant to take unwanted household items and put them back into communities that need them, while educating people on repair and reuse.

Cllr Tom Ross, GMCA lead for the Environment, Waste and Recycling, said: 

“Voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise groups play a vital role in our communities, which is why it’s so important that we continue to support them. The Renew Community Fund is unique in that the money is raised by residents donating preloved household items that are repaired and resold in Renew Shops. I’m proud that we are continuing to run the Community Fund and help so many groups do such important work in their communities.”

Daniel Carolan, Greater Manchester Contract Director for SUEZ, said:

“We are incredibly proud to see the positive impact of Renew on local communities across Greater Manchester. This funding is a direct result of residents’ fantastic efforts in donating and buying pre-loved items. This scheme is a perfect example of how the circular economy can benefit everyone, from helping to reduce waste to bringing people together and empowering them with new skills.”

Rebecca Hill from Restocked CIC said:

“We are absolutely delighted and so grateful to receive this funding. It means we can set up our workshop, rescue more furniture from going to waste, and help local people facing furniture poverty to create homes they can be proud of. Beyond that, this funding also gives us the chance to share skills in upholstery, upcycling, and carpentry with our community. It’s a huge boost at the very start of our journey, and we can’t thank the Renew Community Fund enough for believing in our vision and future.”

Money raised at the Renew shops also results in an annual donation to Greater Manchester Mayor’s Charity, supporting efforts to address homelessness and rough sleeping.