About Us
Please click on a section to find out more.
Do your unwanted but useful items need new homes? Are you looking for something?
We help people give and get things for free in their local community. Some people have stuff they don't want any more. Other people would like things they don't have. We match them up. We don't have physical premises, or warehouses - people give things directly to each other.
Don't throw it away, give it away!
It's simple.
- Post a message offering an item.
- Other people see it and reply to you.
- Choose who to give it to and they collect.
- You've decluttered, made someone's day and saved an item from landfill.
That's freegling! And it's all free.
You can also search or browse the items offered, or post a request for something that other people might have.
We Love Volunteers!
Freegle is run by volunteers. Here are some of us:
Our Board
Our volunteers elect a Board. Here they are:
Andy lives in Oxfordshire and has 3 children and 4 grandchildren, and is retired. He enjoys caravanning and has a dog called Max who keeps him in line. His outlook on life is one of practicality, or as his Dad called it, "make do and mend"...
Cat does the publicity and social media for Freegle; she is a tireless and award-winning waste-prevention activist. She famously sourced the materials for an architect designed house built out of waste in Brighton. She also does inspiring rubbish talks all around the world in the hope we still have a world in years to come! She’s a little bit disruptive but in a good way and being Australian is happiest in the garden or on the sea with some sunshine thrown in.
Christian is a postgraduate Research Software Engineer at the University of Manchester currently working on the Spinnaker project. When not programming or playing on the computer Christian enjoys hiking, skiing and sailing. He lives with his wife, who he met in Paris. They have four adult children and four cats.
David set up SOENECS, an independent environmental research and innovation practice in 2014 following 15 years in leadership roles in local and regional government. SOENECS provides strategic advice and support to the public and private sectors on circular economy, waste & resource management, innovative solutions, chairing and facilitation and partnership delivery. David is co-creator and programme manager for the www.pothole-spotter.co.uk trial and the www.techtakeback.co.uk trial. David is also the London “Circular Economy Club” co-organiser, non-executive Director of CIWM enterprises, Chair of the ICE Resource Management Panel, Delivery Director for the Diocese of Chichester Energy Stewardship Programme and advisor and past chair to the National Waste Network Chairs (WNC). He is a Chartered Waste Manager, a Fellow of the Chartered Institution of Wastes Management (CIWM), a Fellow of the Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA) and a Chartered Environmentalist.
Dee joined Freegle in 2014. She loves the mixture of new technology and old fashioned economy, sharing and neighbourliness. Together with Nigel and Penny, she moderates communities in in Croydon, Lewisham, Hammersmith and Fulham, Wandsworth, Lambeth, Sevenoaks and Tonbridge. She also helps members who are having problems using Freegle.
After two decades in the commercial software world, Edward now focuses on generating altruism through technology. He's been involved in online reuse since 2005, and when he's not working as an IT contractor (partly for Freegle) helps other volunteering and medical charities. He lives in the wilds of Lancashire, hunts down ghost signs, and likes cake so much that he really ought to get out for a walk more often. Edward is the Board Chair.
Jo is based in Liverpool and has been for 4 years, originally from the South Wales valleys. She works in the charity sector and have done for most of her career as well as volunteering for a wide variety of organisations in the North West. In the aim to tackle her hoarding nature she's perfecting the Freegle way of living.
Sheila has been moderating Freegle groups since 2005. She cares for six Hertfordshire groups with the help of four moderators. Re-use is important to Sheila, not only for helping the environment, but also for the community spirit that giving useful items to others who may not otherwise be able to afford them creates. She also coordinates the Freegle mentor team helping other moderators sort out problems with running their groups.
Why We Do It
People have different reasons! Common reasons are:
- Many of us are passionate about the environment - and reuse means we make and destroy less stuff.
- We like helping people get things they need, which they otherwise couldn't get.
- We care about our local communities, and this is a way to make them better.
Get Involved!
We're always looking for more volunteers - for local communities, graphics, publicity, improving the website...there's lots to do.
If you'd like to get involved, contact your local community.
Freegle is free to use, but not free to run. We provide a free service, and keep costs phenomenally low thanks to our large number of committed volunteers - our annual budget averages just £40,000 each year. You can see our accounts here.
Nevertheless, there are still costs involved, and if we had more money we could get more people freegling more often. We run on a shoestring...actually, we're saving up to buy a shoestring.
There are lots of good causes out there, many of them for life-threatening conditions, all of them competing for charity funding. It usually goes to bigger charities than us doing more important work, so we currently rely on voluntary donations to cover our costs. You can donate here.
Many current donations come from our volunteers, who are already donating their time and may not be able to donate money as well. If you can, please donate £3 to keep us running - but anything you can give is very welcome. Regular monthly donations are especially helpful.
We also have ads on the site and in emails. It doesn't raise as much as you'd think, but it helps keep us running.
Freegle is a UK-wide umbrella organisation, formed in 2009 by experienced volunteers and members of the free reuse community. We are a charity, and our charitable aims are:
- Promoting the keeping of usable items out of landfill.
- Promoting and supporting local community groups working in the area of reuse.
- Empowering and supporting volunteers working for local Freegle groups.
- Informing and educating the public about environmental matters related to the reuse and recycling of unwanted usable goods.
- Promoting sustainable waste management practices.
Each Freegle local group is run independently and is affiliated to Freegle Ltd, which provides central services (such as this website) to these groups and their volunteers. Freegle Ltd is a Registered Society (previously known as an Industrial and Provident Society for Community Benefit). Freegle Ltd is owned and governed by its members. Local and national volunteers are eligible for membership.
Charities of this type are slightly unusual in that they do not register with the Charity Commission (see here). Instead they register with the Financial Conduct Authority (our registration number is 32410R) and also register with HMRC as charitable (our reference is XT32865). So we're legally a charity, but of a slightly different type than you might be used to.
If you have questions, please contact us.
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