This week (16-22 October 2023) is the 20th annual Recycle Week – a dedicated campaign that aims to raise awareness about the importance of recycling and encourage individuals, communities, and organisations to take action to reduce waste and promote sustainability. The theme this year is The Big Recycling Hunt promoting a week of action which brings the nation together to recycle more of the right things, more often.
So, here at Lakeside Village we thought this was the perfect opportunity to remind all our lovely customers what recycling facilities we have on offer at the centre to help make sure we’re all doing our bit to look after the environment we live in. Our marketing manager, Abby Chandler, explains more.
Last year we unveiled the Lakeside Village Green Zone – an area in the Guest Services area of the centre where customers and centre visitors can donate and drop-off used and unwanted items for recycling and reuse.
The zone, which is supported by our online Think Green page (https://lakeside-village.co.uk/think-green) combines two of our key missions: To encourage us all to recycle and reuse wherever possible; and to support local community causes, charities and appeals.
It consists of five recycled containers set against a backdrop of interesting, hard hitting facts about the importance of recycling and reuse and provides one place where customers can drop off a wide range of items such as bras, household batteries, plastic bottles, food for the local foodbank, and clean, unwanted bedding.
The items are then either sent for recycling or donated to charities and appeals such as Against Breast Cancer or the local RSPCA.
We also have a book library where people can donate and borrow books.
We’ve been overwhelmed by the response we’ve had to the Green Zone over the last 12 months but we’re always on the lookout for what else we can help with so if you have any ideas, please do let us know!
In addition to this area in guest services, Lakeside customers can also ‘shwop’ at M&S Outlet, where clean, pre-loved clothing can be dropped off (even if it’s not from M&S). M&S will also collect household batteries to recycle.
At the Next Outlet, customers can replace a new electrical, electronic or batter-operated item with a new one from Next. Simply bring the old item into store within 28 days, show the receipt for its replacement, and Next will take care of recycling it.
Hard to recycle plastics, like clean packaging pouches and make-up packaging, pumps and droppers, can be dropped off at The Body Shop to be repurposed for another life (even if it’s not from The Body Shop).
Costa and Greggs offer free water refills if customers bring in their own bottles, and Costa is also selling re-usable lids for their cups.
And lots of stores are selling some fantastic products that have sustainability and responsibility at their heart such as handbags from Radley and refill water bottles from Trespass, Mountain Warehouse, ProCook and Cook N Dine, to name a few.
We hope the centre and our stores have created lots of easy options to help you do your bit. This Recycle Week might be the perfect time to take a look at what you have hiding at home that could be dropped off here to be recycled properly or reused and repurposed. We hope to see you at our Green Zone soon!
