9 Lives Furniture in Rickmansworth saving landfill waste

9 Lives Furniture Store, in Rickmansworth town centre, sells upcycled and second hand items, such as tables, chairs, beds, household items and clothes donated by the public.

Since first opening in 2004, 9 Lives manager Marie Frost says the charity has sold more than 50,000 items of furniture to more than 13,000 customers - the equivalent to around 900 tonnes of usable items which would otherwise have gone to landfill or been burned.

In 2019/20, 9 Lives sold 2,679 items of furniture and over 2,000 other items including clothes and household goods to 889 customers, saving an incredible 45 tonnes from landfill or incineration - around the weight of seven and a half elephants.

Inside the 9 Lives Furniture store in Rickmansworth

Ms Frost said: "Not only does reuse stop these items unnecessarily going to waste, but it also reduces consumption of new goods which are often made from unsustainable, non-renewable materials, which themselves will ultimately end up as a waste product."

The charity also provides an opportunity for volunteers to develop interpersonal skills, in addition to practical skills upcycling furniture. Last year it had around 30 volunteers, many of whom have learning difficulties or are recovering from mental ill-health.

9 Lives shop in Rickmansworth

In 2019 Three Rivers District Council declared a climate emergency, committing to making its own operations carbon neutral by 2030 and to helping the district achieve the government target of net zero carbon by 2050.

Councillor Phil Williams, the council’s lead member for environmental services and sustainability, said: "9 Lives are doing great work to help the district reduce its carbon footprint.

"In the past couple of years we’ve seen a definite trend for people who could easily afford to buy new furniture, wanting to reuse instead. The likes of David Attenborough and Greta Thunberg, and popular TV programmes like The Repair Shop have made people wake up to the inconceivable volume of waste produced in the UK alone and the impact it has on our natural world."

File photo of waste management staff in Three Rivers with Cllr Phil Williams (second left)

Meanwhile, Three Rivers has the highest household recycling rate in England, according to new research from packaging supplier RAJA.

Three Rivers District Council recycled 64.1 per cent of household waste in 2020 and has been in the top five on this list for three years in a row.

WRAP, a charity that helps businesses and communities to minimise waste and recycle more, reported that 56 per cent of Brits stated that they recycled more during 2020.