We are pleased to announce that Veolia, the UK’s leading resource management company, has been shortlisted for the 2017 Private-Public Sector Partnership Award, for their project ‘Re:Form – a new life for old uniforms.’
Veolia in Southwark partnered up with March based charity Reuseful UK in order to create the Re:Form initiative to divert old uniform and personal protective equipment away from landfill and into reuse.
The initiative has already begun to give back to society with its inspirational back-to-work training scheme that has enabled over 100 people to gain new creative skills through sorting, upcycling and re-selling the donated items, as well as confidence in team-working and learning. So far this has helped 40 people get back into employment and has made a further 66 people job ready, having gained new work skills.
The Southwark and March based initiative gives redundant uniform a new life and transforms the life of the unemployed. A successful trial at Veolia’s Integrated Waste Management Facility in Southwark has been expanded to divert 10,000 items from going to landfill or energy recovery, from over 3,000 Veolia uniform wearers across London.
In 2017 Reuseful UK and Veolia aim to expand the scheme to handle 50 tonnes of corporate workwear nationally with Veolia, its partners and Clients all partaking in the scheme. Whilst also investigating how they can make de-branding less destructive along with manufacturing improvements to make materials last longer to ensure they are easier to deconstruct for more effective fibre reclamation. Veolia’s longer term aspirations are to explore product sourcing and design to bring corporate workwear sustainability into the circular economy.
Tricia Watson, Project Manager at Veolia says: “It is with thanks to all our partners involved that we have been successful in rolling out the Re:Form project and as a result of all our combined hard work have been shortlisted for MRWs 2017 Private-Public sector Partnership Award. I look forward to seeing how much more we can achieve with our partnership and will carry on striving towards our goal of bringing corporate workwear sustainability into the circular economy.”