Now we’re taking that legacy further, working to build a place-based circular action plan for the area.
What does that mean?
The circular economy is about keeping materials and resources in use for as long as possible through sharing, reusing and repairing. It’s central to our ongoing decarbonisation work, and a powerful lever for reducing waste and improving resource efficiency across the area.
We’re delighted to be working with SOENECS, led by David Greenfield, who sits on the UK Circular Economy Taskforce and serves as Vice President of the Circular Economy Institute. We’re in good hands.
What’s already happening
A lot of circular activity is already underway in London Bridge:
- Tesco has launched an in-store soft plastics recycling bin, turning collected material into new products.
- Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital runs a recycling scheme for walking aids, cleaning, repairing and reissuing crutches and walking sticks to people who need them.
- TBC.London incorporated 20 tonnes of salvaged steel into their new building.
- And through a materials exchange WhatsApp group, hundreds of items have already been shared in the first few months, most donated to good causes.
How you can get involved
First, we want to build a baseline picture of circular economy activity across the area, including waste and resource mapping, services and infrastructure, so we can identify strengths, opportunities and barriers.
We’d love to hear about your organisation’s current practices and any opportunities you see for waste reduction or more circular processes. Anything that helps us understand how materials, resources and services flow through the area is valuable.
A workshop on 10 September will bring ideas together across the business community. Please do forward this to the relevant colleague in your organisation. You can find out more here.
To share information or get involved, contact jack@teamlondonbridge.co.uk or tom@teamlondonbridge.co.uk, or reach our partners at SOENECS directly: PiersM@soenecs.co.uk