A PROJECT in Blaenavon which provides low-cost furniture for low-income households has reopened its warehouse following a difficult past year, and is appealing for donations.

Circulate Recycling, based in Blaenavon, takes in unwanted furniture, repairs it and sells it on at a cut price to those who could otherwise not afford it.

However, once the pandemic struck, the warehouse had to close entirely, with the project – run by Garnsychan Partnership – unable to take in or sell any items.

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“Unfortunately this place had to shut because of the restrictions and our income – like most charities – was lost overnight,” said Natasha Wright, marketing officer for Garnsychan Partnership.

“We couldn’t take any donations, and couldn’t make any deliveries.

“Garnsychan has done a lot in terms of food deliveries and collecting and dropping off prescriptions.

“But anything from here that we were doing for the community just stopped.

“It’s been a slow uptake. I’m not sure people know we are back open, and I think some are still a bit nervous about coming out. But we are very covid safe.

“It’s getting busier with people buying, but it is donations that we are struggling with at the moment.”

Donated items of furniture can be dropped off or collected, for a small fee.

“We have a fogging machine where we clean it all off to make sure that it’s all safe,” said Ms Wright. “Anything that comes in is decontaminated and checked over and then put on the shop floor.”

“We ask before going out to collection if it’s in good condition and suitable for reselling – so no broken springs on beds – and if it’s got its fire tag,” said Dylan Drew, from Circulate.

“Electrical items go for a PAT (Portable Appliance Testing) where they are tested for 24 hours to make sure they are safe to use and properly grounded.

“We try to put back as much as we can into reuse.”

“Our main aim is stopping this all from going to landfill or people just fly-tipping,” said Ms Wright. “That is what I hate, seeing someone just dumping things on the mountain.

“If something can’t be reused, we direct them to the council.”

Due to coronavirus restrictions, the project was not able to keep a strong group of volunteers on site to help with repairing the donated goods. However, with the restrictions beginning to ease, the project is now appealing for volunteers to help in the workshop.

“When we get our volunteers back we give them training on upcycling,” said Ms Wright.

“Normally, we have 15 volunteers, but at the moment we’ve only got two.

“Volunteers get help with the CVs and during their time with us we help them gain qualifications.

“It’s flexible in terms of hours too. It’s mainly a short-term thing, but we have had volunteers stay with us for 12 years.

“We’ll have seven or eight work stations. They’ll have all the tools. We have bed frames that need fixing, shelving units that are a bit rickety and need propping up a bit.”

To find out more, visit garnsychan.co.uk/circulate-recycling