In 2014, Herne Hill’s shopping parades were haunted by big commercial waste bins. Almost all the shops kept huge metal bins on the pavements for the convenience of their rubbish collectors. Pedestrians literally had to squeeze past, holding their noses to avoid their fragrant aura. Shopkeepers knew they deterred custom but had no alternative.
What we did
The Forum recruited enough Traders to enable a commercial operator to start a daily round of bag collections from each shop. For six months, the Forum subsidised collections until thirty shopkeepers were recruited and the scheme broke even. In addition to removing over a dozen dumpsters from the Neighbourhood’s pavements, Quantum waste achieved higher recycling rates than the incumbent waste collectors (95%). The scheme is still in operation and can be joined by any local business.
Details
- Date of completion2014 - ongoing
- Budget£3,000
- Funding SourceHHF grants
- ParticipantsHerne Hill Traders, Quantum Waste, Lambeth BC, Southwark BC
- Project TeamLucy Reynolds, Tricia Keracher-Summerfield, Giles Gibson