Cleaning up the problem of dumped mattresses in Orkney

A new project launching in Orkney soon aims to put to bed the problem of mattresses being dumped before their time – benefitting both the environment and local people’s wallets.

The project - a partnership between Orkney Islands Council’s waste team and Employability Orkney who run the Restart charity shop - aims to keep mattresses in use for longer, with the help of specialist industrial cleaning equipment funded by the Scottish Government.

It’s estimated over 1000 mattresses are discarded each year in Orkney (based on 10,758 households).

At the moment, two out of every three mattresses donated to Restart are still in good useable condition but not fit for re-selling – due to cosmetic marks on the outer fabric.

Following a successful joint bid to the Government's ‘Recycling Improvement Fund’ (RIF) administered by Zero Waste Scotland for the specialist cleaning equipment, more mattresses can be kept in use after a refresh at Restart.

They’ll then be available at Restart - already a well-established and much-loved source of quality, affordable second-hand household items in Orkney - for people to buy with confidence.

Results from similar projects indicate that around 20% of mattresses discarded or donated by households in Orkney could be cleaned, sanitised and re-used - potentially diverting around 200 mattresses for reuse annually, with an estimated weight of around 4.1 tonnes per annum (average 20kg per mattress).

Aside from reducing the resources needed to deal with bulky, heavy discarded mattresses, and the costs and carbon impacts of transportation to Shetland (for landfill) - it will also mean more essential and affordable furniture items for local families in need, while supporting local employment and training opportunities.

Restart also have a contract with the Council to provide ‘housing packs’ to those who find themselves in financial or housing difficulties, and it’s expected that cleaned mattresses could support this valuable service too.

It’s also hoped to offer a paid-for ‘mattress refresh’ service to householders or businesses through the project in future.

The specialist cleaning equipment will be based at Employability Orkney’s premises on Junction Road, Kirkwall next to the Restart shop.

Signage will be erected at the peedie blue Restart Shed based at the Council’s Hatston Recycling Centre to encourage the public to leave any mattresses there.

The project has also been supported by the Council’s Community Payback team who’ve arranged for repairs on the peedie shed at Hatston,and built a purpose-made workbench for the new cleaning operations.

A mini-awareness raising campaign will also run on the Council and Employability Orkney facebook pages.

Amy Sutherland, Service Manager for Restart, said: “Through our Restart shop, Employability Orkney already have a proven track record of encouraging reuse and recycling, and we're confident the Orkney public will be delighted to hear about this new initiative and help make it a success too.

“By donating a mattress for cleaning, not only will you be helping reduce demand for new products, and reducing waste - you’ll be giving our supported employees the opportunity to develop new skill sets including the use of equipment, health and safety risk assessments, customer liaison, and other retail skills.

“We’d remind folks that we can collect mattresses for free and of course urge people to make most of any mattress collections they arrange with us by donating other items while they're at it – just let us know about any bulky or big items so we can ensure there is space in the van.

“Our new equipment is also capable of refreshing our upholstery – so down the track we’ll be able to refresh upholstered furniture donated to us too. But for now we’re focussing on tackling the backlog of mattresses we’ve been holding aside for this project.”

Employability Orkney are funded by various partners including Orkney Islands Council and works in partnership with various groups in addition to OIC, such as the Job Centre, other local charities, local businesses and education provider, to develop employability skills in people who struggle with confidence or experience. The charity boasts a high success rate when it comes to helping supported employees into the workplace or further education opportunities.

All supported employees receive coaching from a dedicated employment supervisor, to help them build skills and confidence. All EO employees and supported employees receive at least the Real Living Wage, which is assessed annually by the Real Living Wage Foundation.

Chair of the Council’s Development and Infrastructure Committee, Councillor Kristopher Leask, said: “This is a great example of staff at local organisations including here in the Council working together to transform one of the county’s most challenging waste and environmental issues into an initiative which generates real benefits.

“We’re grateful to all involved and for the support and advice from Zero Waste Scotland, and we hope the community will get behind it by donating their serviceable mattresses to Restart.”

Zero Waste Scotland’s Recycling Improvement Fund Manager David Gunn said:

“Mattresses are notoriously difficult to dispose of, and many are thrown away while still perfectly useable.

“That’s why this project to keep quality mattresses in circulation longer is so important. As well as preventing valuable materials from being wasted, it will also help ease the pressure on people’s pockets.

“We’re pleased to have supported this excellent circular initiative and look forward to seeing it in action.”