A furniture restoration project within mental health inpatient wards in Warrington has won a prestigious award for waste prevention at the National Recycling Awards.
The shabby chic project has supported furniture reuse and upcycling on Austen and Sheridan wards at Hollins Park Hospital in Winwick, which is run by North West Boroughs Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust.
The innovative project was up against 11 other shortlisted entrants in the Waste Prevention category at the awards, which were held in London recently and aim to celebrate excellence, innovation and best practice in waste management.
As part of shabby chic, unwanted items are selected from the Trust’s second-hand furniture store so service users on the wards can restore the items during their activity sessions.
Furniture items are cleaned, painted, decorated and waxed by patients, then sold through a sealed bid auction once complete so people can take the bespoke items home. Patients learn new skills whilst enjoying the therapeutic benefits of restoring the furniture and the otherwise unwanted items are given new value and a new home, preventing them from being sent to landfill.
The project, which has now been running for two years, was established by ward activity coordinators Laura Lockhart and Sarah McKeown, who have been working with service users to help them restore and decorate the items.
Laura said: “We wanted to do something different in our activity sessions and both Sarah and I really enjoy restoring furniture in our spare time, so we thought it was a great opportunity to share our hobby with the patients on our wards.”
“We’re absolutely delighted to have won such a prestigious award for shabby chic,” Sarah added.
“The project has so many benefits, not just for the environment but also for our service users, who find the furniture restoration therapeutic and rewarding, and they’ve told us it gives them a real sense of achievement to see the finished items.”
For more information about the National Recycling Awards 2017, visit:
www.nra.mrw.co.uk
