Derbyshire residents urged to support pioneering bid to recycle unwanted mobility equipment

Equipment to help people live more independently at home is delivered to residents on behalf of Derbyshire county council by a company called Medequip. Kit delivered ranges from wheelchairs and ‘rise and recline’ chairs to small aids like Zimmer frames, walking sticks and toilet frames.

Now collection points for equipment that residents no longer need have been introduced at five of the County Council’s recycling centres ready for collection by Medequip.

As well as providing a more convenient alternative for some people, it also reduces the number of journeys Medequip has to make to collect items from individual homes which helps to cut carbon emissions.

The scheme is running at recycling centres in:• Loscoe• Stonegravels in Chesterfield• Ashbourne• Northwood (Darley Dale)• Bolsover.

So far 450 items have been recovered from the recycling centres and of these 350 (78%) were returned to warehouse shelves for re-use with just the remaining 100 going for recycling.

There are plans to roll out the scheme to the council’s other sites at Bretby, Ilkeston and Waterswallows (Buxton) later this year.

Larger pieces of equipment, including electrical kit, will continue to be collected by Medequip from people’s homes.Derbyshire County Council, Cabinet Member for Adult Care, Councillor Natalie Hoy said: “I’m pleased we’re able to work with Medequip and proud to see Derbyshire helping to lead the way.“We know that demand for this sort of equipment is high and the scheme will help to collect the smaller equipment and get it back on the shelves and re-used as quickly as possible.“This helps to support vulnerable people in our community which is a priority for us.“And there are environmental benefits too. Reducing the miles travelled by Medequip and making sure equipment doesn’t go to waste takes us one step closer on our journey to helping Derbyshire reduce its carbon emissions to net zero by 2050 or sooner.“I look forward to the scheme being extended to our recycling centres across the whole county.”

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Steve Smith, Regional General Manager at Medequip said: “Supplying community equipment to ensure Derbyshire residents can live independently is extremely important, from a wellbeing perspective and for everyday safety.

“Vital equipment also supports our NHS with hospital discharges, so people can return to their home environment with equipment in place to help with daily living. Working in partnership with Derbyshire County Council’s Household Waste Recycling Centres allows residents to have the option to return equipment that is no longer needed at their convenience and this enables us to support others who require that equipment.

“All items returned will be thoroughly cleaned, assessed, safety tested and either repaired and reused or stripped down for recycling.”

All the recycling centres are open daily 8.30am to 6pm.

For further details about the scheme and recycling unwanted items, visit the website: www.derbyshire.gov.uk/recycling