The FRN is the national umbrella organisation for furniture recycling charitable re-use organisations across the UK .
Its aim is to reduce poverty by helping households in the provision of furniture, white goods and other household items at affordable prices. It also supports re-use organisations in providing training and placement opportunities for people who are socially excluded. Hence these member organisations have both social and environmental aims.
The re-use organisations are varied ranging from local charities to large social enterprises. Some are attached to housing associations, development trusts and councils for voluntary service. The benefits of FRN members work is said to extend far beyond the obvious and include confidence building.
The FRN organisation indicates that the sector employs around 3,000 staff, has over 5,000 trainees in member organisations, supports over 8,000 volunteers, helps around ½ million low income households, reuses 2 million items including ¼ million electrical items and importantly diverts 85,000 tonnes of waste from landfill.
The furniture re-use sector has an annual turnover of under £60 million despite the large physical turnover of reusable items.
The sector is able to reprocess electrical items in line with Waste Electrical & Electronic Equipment (WEEE) regulations and is developing partnerships with local authorities to collect bulky waste.
The outputs of the sector are expected to double over the next three years as more and better services are provided.
For further information visit http://www.frn.org.uk/ .