If you have reusable items you no longer need, consider donating them to charity shops or furniture reuse organisations where they will be sold so other people can continue to use them. By donating to a charity shop or reuse organisation, you will be reducing the amount of waste going to landfill and also supporting a good cause of your choice.

Charity shops

Generally charity shops will accept:

• clothing, shoes and accessories,
• books and toys,
• kitchenware and ornaments,
• bedding and soft furnishings, and
• DVD's, CD's and computer games.

Some charity shops also specialise in vintage clothing, bridal wear, books, furniture and electrical appliances.

Furniture reuse organisations

Generally furniture reuse organisations will accept:

• usable furniture including sofas, mattresses and wardrobes.
• household electrical appliances including washing machines, fridges and freezers.

Your local organisations

To find organisations in your area and what they are looking for see our Reuse directory.

Alternatively, to find your favourite charity shop either visit or look under 'Charity shops' in your local yellow pages. For a list of furniture reuse organisations across York and North Yorkshire see the useful downloads below.

There are also a number of other reuse organisations, businesses and charities across the partnership area, based either within your local community or at your local household waste recycling centre.  

If you would prefer to buy or sell reusable goods or even give and receive them for free there are many, car boot and jumble sales and web based reuse schemes available to you.

Final checks

Before donating items please check that:

• all items are safe, clean and in good working order e.g. books are not missing pages, puzzles have all the pieces.
• soft furnishings e.g. sofas need to have fire retardant labels attached.
• If you want a change of image or new clothes but only have a small budget, have a look in your local charity shop as they are full of unique, quality one off items that really won't cost the earth.

Useful downloads Furniture Reuse Organisations in York and North Yorkshire [11kb] [pdf] Contact details for the furniture reuse organisations in York and North Yorkshire