The partnership began in 2013 by conducting annual end-of-year clearouts for students living in halls of residences on campus. There are also several British Heart Foundation donation bins located across the Loughborough campus where staff and students can drop off donations at any time (a map of donation points can be viewed here).  

During the 2020/21 academic year, donations collected from the University’s campus community has successfully raised £9,128 for the British Heart Foundation. In addition to the funds raised, it also prevented 5.2 tonnes of unwanted items being sent to landfill. 

For private student accommodation in Loughborough the stats were also impressive, with 869 bags collected generating more than £12,000 for the charity.  

Since the partnership began eight years ago Loughborough students have donated over £550,935 and diverted 314.8 tonnes from going to landfill, equating to 3,203,882kg of C02 emissions.  

The British Heart Foundation works with more than 100 universities across the UK as part of its ‘Pack for Good’ campaign and this year has successfully raised £1.2m, despite the challenges faced by Covid-19. 

The University’s Environmental Manager Nik Hunt commented: “We’re delighted to have exceeded our target of raising £500,000 for the British Heart Foundation by the end of 2021 – this is testament to our amazing students and staff members at Loughborough who have taken the time to clean out their unwanted items to support a great cause over the years. 

“I encourage students to have a clear-out before they go home for the Christmas holidays, using the British Heart Foundation banks on campus for any worthwhile donations. I’d also like to take this opportunity to advise buying sustainably this Christmas, by seeking second-hand items from charity shops or elsewhere instead of buying new.” 

Reusable and clean donations in the form of clothing, paired shoes, books, CDs and DVDs can be dropped off at the British Heart Foundation points across campus throughout the year. Please note these should not be used for dirty or damaged items, sharp items, bedding, pans and crockery, fragile items, electricals, toiletries or general waste.