Does yourArt department, the school playground, or those tatty corridors leading to the Staff Room need a lick of paint- and generally brightening up?? Do I hear a resounding 'Yes!' followed by...'but we don't have enough money in the school budget' . No worries! Loads of free (or small donation) paint is now available through your nearest Community RePaint Scheme! Community RePaint is an award-winning UK network of 70 community-based paint reuse schemes. Each scheme collects “half-tins” of leftover, domestic paint from householders at a donation point at the local council’s household waste recycling centre or civic amenity site. Additionally, most schemes also have unsold and end-of-line paint donated from local DIY stores such as B&Q, Homebase and trade centres such as Dulux Decorator.
The paint is stored at a scheme’s premises and then redistributed to local charities, schools, community and voluntary groups and individuals in social need. Paint is usually offered free of charge although schemes encourage small financial donations to help cover their costs. Some schemes operate annual subscription programmes.
If you know what type of paint you need, the colour and quantity, you can phone your local branch and place your order!
I've just spent the weekend painting my kitchen, hallway and spare bedroom, using a selection of emulsion, gloss, radiator and tile paints from my local Community RePaint Scheme. I made a £5 donation for 18 Litres of Paint. This included a full 2.5 Litre tin of Farrow&Ball Paint Emulsion(£25.99 new) and full a 2.5 Litre tin from the Tate Series 2 (£29.00 new) inspired by the Tate Britain. Great colours..... and what a bargain!
For further details go to http://www.communityrepaint.org.uk
The UK network is managed by the employee-owned, not-for-profit environmental consultancy, Resource Futures.
