Residents of North Tyneside are being asked to recycle any unwanted or unused textiles.
North Tyneside Council is asking residents to give any clothing, fabric and blankets they no longer need to local charities – or take them along to one of the textile recycling banks in the borough.
The local authority isn’t able to recycle textiles collected from residents’ household recycling bins, as they become contaminated after mixing with other waste.
Cllr John Stirling, cabinet member with responsibility for Environment, said: “In North Tyneside, we collect a number of textiles from household waste bins that we are unable to recycle, which has a serious effect on our carbon footprint.
“That’s why we are encouraging our residents to make use of the excellent services that these charities provide and to take their unwanted textiles to them.”
One of the charities that accept textiles in North Tyneside is St Oswald’s Hospice, which has shops in Whitley Bay, North Shields, Forest Hall, Benton, Wallsend and Shiremoor.
Andrew Moir, Head of Retail at St Oswald's Hospice said: "All textiles have a value to us, and we would encourage people to bring their unwanted clothing along to their local St Oswald's shop. We accept anything apart from quilts, and even items we are unable to sell have a recycling value to us.
"As well as bringing goods into our stores, we operate a free collections service for people with a large amount of items to donate. You can call 0191 246 8123 to arrange a collection."
For details of recycling banks and other charities that have informed the council that they accept textiles, visit www.northtyneside.gov.uk.
This work is part of a larger, more concerted effort by North Tyneside Council to reduce its carbon footprint.
Alongside this is the council’s partnership with www.fill-your-pants.com, encouraging residents to use reusable nappies instead of regular, disposable ones.
Residents who opt to use reusable nappies can receive up to £30 cash back on new and second hand purchases.
For more information, contact recycle@northtyneside.gov.uk.
Also, as part of the Against Breast Cancer scheme, the council have made a ‘bra bank’ available, making it easy to recycle any unwanted bras.
Thanks to the generous support from both staff and residents, the council have so far been able to provide three full bra banks to the charity.
The two available banks can be found within the council’s Quadrant HQ at Cobalt Business Park and the Household Waste Recycling Centre, in North Shields
You can find out more information on the Against Breast Cancer scheme here: http://www.againstbreastcancer.org.uk/get-involved/fundraising/recycling/513/bra-recycling/.
ENDS