Donations set to double in national campaign

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Following a competitive application process, Sussex Green Living has been selected to take part in the Big Give Earth Raise—a national match-funding campaign launching on Earth Day 22 April. 

From noon Wednesday 22 April to noon Wednesday 29 April every donation made through the campaign will be matched, meaning a £50 donation becomes £100 to support the charity’s work across Sussex. 

Run by Big Give, the campaign brings together philanthropists, foundations, and businesses to match public donations. Over the years, Big Give has raised approximately £427 million for thousands of charities. NOTE: 30th April – WE ACHIEVED OUR TARGET!

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Repair Starts Here

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Across Sussex, people are proving that repair is not a thing of the past but part of the future we need to build. From Storrington to Horsham, Lewes to Brighton, Repair Cafés show what a circular economy looks like in everyday life: people coming together to fix broken things, share knowledge and stop waste before it starts.

Last weekend marked International Repair Day, but for the volunteers and visitors at Repair Cafés across Sussex, repair is not just a day, it is a habit that keeps growing. These monthly meet-ups are practical and sociable. A kettle, a radio or a pair of trousers comes in broken and often goes home working again. What stays behind is something less tangible but just as valuable: connection, confidence and community.

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Batting for Change: Repair and Reuse Take Root in Local Cricket

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In a small workshop in Haywards Heath, cricket bats are being restored to life. Barney Morris, better known as Barney Bats, repairs around 50 damaged bats each week. After a busy weekend of matches, his workbench can resemble a triage unit as bats arrive in need of care and attention.

Morris, who runs the cricket department at Wisdom Sports in town, is on a mission to prove that a cracked bat need not be discarded. His passion began when he started fixing senior bats for junior players, driven by the high cost of new kit. “The price of cricket bat willow means getting a good bat is really expensive,” he explained. “Now I get donated adult bats which I can repair and resize for children and I can sell them at a fraction of the cost of a new bat.” Read more

From Repair to Refill: Local Projects Rethink Waste and Rebuild Community

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Across West Sussex, more and more communities are finding simple ways to cut waste and make the most of what they already have. Whether it’s fixing broken items, passing on unwanted goods or switching to refillable options, people are discovering that small changes can make a big difference.

At Sussex Green Living, we’re working to promote practical solutions like these through our support for repair cafés, new refill initiatives and by sharing inspiring stories from across the county. One group that really caught our attention is based just outside Worthing, where bicycles are getting a new lease of life, along with the people who ride them.

New life for recycled bikes

What do you do with an unwanted bicycle? Down here on the coast, we contacted Durrington Community Cycle Project (DCCP), who are tired of seeing bikes end up in landfill. Instead, they show customers how to repair their bikes and keep them cycling safely. What’s more, they’ve integrated the whole repair and reuse ethos into the heart of their local community.

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From Donation to Dump: The Environmental Cost of Charity Shop Surplus

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You know that big bag of old clothes you dropped off at the charity shop after having a wardrobe declutter? You probably felt a warm glow of generosity by donating your unwanted bits to a good cause (and it’s probably also a relief to get all that clutter out of sight by conveniently handing it all over to someone else, right?). What if I told you that only between 10% and 30% of second-hand donations are resold in store. What happens to all the rest?

The clothes that charity shops can’t sell are taken away and in the UK, 70% of used clothing is exported to the Global South. Once there, many clothes end up in landfills or incinerated. This has major impacts on health and the environment, including water pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, worsening the strain on countries already struggling with waste management infrastructure. Read more

Exciting new family friendly event in Horsham

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Growing together – Food – Fun – Family – Free

From 10am-4pm on Saturday 26th April, Horsham will come alive to celebrate green living in Sussex – perfect for mums, dads, and little ones alike. It’s a day packed with local food, expert talks and eco-friendly fun that will inspire you and your family to live more sustainably. Spread across four unique venues in central Horsham, come along for a day of free goodies, family-friendly activities, and caring community vibes at the Plant to Plate Festival! Read more

Communities or custodians?

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It’s not just Spring in the air!

I can feel a new wave of environmental awareness amongst the communities around us, uniting and supporting each other to reduce our impact on the planet.

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Sussex Green Living Achievements 2022

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Ashington Youth Club

Well what a year 2022 was for Sussex Green Living. As we reflect on the last year and plan for the future and 2023, we thought it was worth taking a moment to share some of our achievements…

Demand for Sussex Green Living environmental education services in schools and public events has never been higher, so much so that requests for our help vastly outstripped the grants we had been awarded to be able to deliver the work in schools.

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Students create inspiring art in Repair Cafe Challenge

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SimonWhen thinking about living an environmentally sustainable life, the first thing most people think about is the 3Rs: ‘reduce, reuse and recycle’. As part of Sussex Green Living’s education outreach programme, we initiated a School Challenge looking at how you can reduce waste by repairing.

 

Our school challenge for Horsham District Schools was supported by a Horsham District Community Lottery Grant, a donation from a Horsham councillor and kindly judged by Horsham artist, Morag Warrack.

 

The challenge invited students to learn about repair cafés, what they do and how they help reduce waste on our planet. There are items that could be repaired but often people don’t have the skillset to make repairs. Repair Cafés are run by volunteers who have both a passion and the expertise to repair electrical, mechanical and textile items. The premise is that you can take along your items and for a small donation, they will try to fix them while you stay, watch and hopefully learn a new skill at the same time.

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Protecting the Battery Life

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Repair Cafe “The battery won’t charge…” We hear these words very often at the Horsham Repair Cafe. It’s true that batteries don’t last forever, but we can make a drastic difference to its life expectancy. The original hybrid car, the Toyota Prius, uses a large traction battery.  Many are still running 20 years later.  So, how can the Prius keep the battery working efficiently for 20 years when some phone batteries only last three? Why do some household battery devices (vacuum cleaners for example) sometimes become useless after two years?

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