British Red Cross
Will + Partners
Our mission was to Rethink, Reuse and Recycle. With architects Will+ Partners we audited the existing furniture from two sites and cherry picked what could be reused and refurbished. We approached corporate partners and asked for furniture donations and the balance of new furniture we specified entirely from a UK supply chain. Any unwanted furniture would be found a new home with the aim of sending nothing to the skip.
The Power of Kindness
‘The Power of Kindness’ is at the centre of everything The British Red Cross do. This resonates through all of their decision making and provided the benchmark by which we measured the success of furniture selection for their HQ refurbishment. Will+ Partners and Salt & Pegram looked to optimise the reuse of existing furniture and refurbish where appropriate, to approach corporate partners for donated furniture, maximise the social value of any new purchases and ensure that any surplus was found a home within the Voluntary and Community Sector.
Every penny saved
Whilst we acknowledged that every pound spent was a pound that could be used to support those in crisis, we agreed that cost should not compromise longevity, a drive towards a circular economy and our support of the local supply chain.
Engagement
Engaged with the entire HQ organisation, establishing the user and ethical requirements.
Benchmark
We benchmarked 155 different new products from UK based suppliers that contribute to the projects Social Value.
Audit
We audited existing furniture and reused products that saved an estimated cost to the project of over £100K
Donations
We were donated used task chairs and meeting furniture that saved an estimated cost to the project of around £250K
Cut Carbon Emissions
We saved as estimated 99.25 tonnes of CO2 emissions.
Donors
The BRC donated surplus furniture to Business to Schools, a charity that supports critically underfunded schools in the UK.
