This scheme was designed to encourage students to donate their unwanted but still valuable items to charity, rather than disposing of them in the general waste.
Donation points were set up in the hall common rooms across campus to allow students to drop off their items. These items were then collected by Domestic Services staff and cleaned and sorted by the Sustainability Team, ready for charities to collect. This year, thanks to the Community Warden Team, the scheme was also offered to students living off campus.
The scheme saw over three tonnes of donations collected, which went out to the local community, providing support for those who need it most.
Loughborough University has partnerships with several charities, built up over the years, as well as some additional charities that took part this year. The following items were donated to the following charities:
- Trent Vineyard Arches Project: Over 100 duvets, 30 crates of kitchenware
- One Roof Leicester: 250kg of miscellaneous homeware.
- Local Foodbanks: 24 crates of food donated.
- YMCA Leicester: Over 100kg of food and toiletries
- Open Hands Leicester: Over 100kg of bedding and small electrical appliances.
- British Heart Foundation: Over 400 bags of clothes donated.
These donated items will go on to help people in the local community and will be sold in local charity shops, raising vital funds. In addition, these items are not being disposed of, removing three tonnes of potential waste and carbon from the atmosphere.
A key partner to this scheme this year was Falcon Support Services, based in Loughborough, who provide support to individuals facing homelessness, providing housing and community support. Over the 2025 move-out period, Falcon Centre took just under one tonne of donations, going to straight into properties. With the surplus duvets donated through the scheme, the Sustainability Team and the Falcon Centre are now running collaborative sustainable craft workshops, making items for residents' homes, all whilst having a chat with service users.
Matt Taylor, Community Manager at Falcon Support Services, commented: “We’re delighted to have formed this sustainable partnership with Loughborough University, saving items from waste while reducing costs for the organisation and Falcon residents. The donated items have gone directly to people who now have a place to call home, helping to provide essential household goods that may not otherwise have been affordable. This partnership enables people moving from supported living into their own homes to settle more quickly and with less financial pressure.”
Thank you so much to all the students who donated items and all the staff members who helped to coordinate this campaign, and a special thanks to the Property Office, who allowed some space to sort and organise donations.
If you would like to sign up to help with future Give ‘n’ Go campaigns, please email sustainability@mailbox.lboro.ac.uk .
This campaign supports the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals:
- SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities
- SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production
- SDG 13: Climate Action.