Habitat for Humanity GB

Habitat for Humanity Great Britain, a member of global housing charity Habitat for Humanity International, has a vision of a world where everyone has a decent place to live. A decent home is a vital foundation for individuals, families, and communities to thrive. It is linked to better educational outcomes, higher levels of employability, better physical and mental health, healthy relationships, and financial stability. Home is not just a place to live – it’s central to all aspects of life.

Funding from Postcode Innovation Trust, thanks to players of People's Postcode Lottery, will be used to open Great Britain’s first ReStore. ReStore is Habitat for Humanity International’s unique retail concept which successfully operates in numerous countries including the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Poland and Northern Ireland.

Designed to combat housing poverty whilst advancing the circular economy, ReStore extends the established ‘charity shop’ concept to recycle not only furniture and electrical appliances, but uniquely unwanted DIY and home materials including curtains, carpets, bricks, paving, insulation, bathrooms, kitchens, paint, wallpaper, and even the nuts and bolts to hold everything together.

ReStore will enable homes in Great Britain to become a source of better wellbeing through improvements to living conditions. It will provide the opportunity to furnish a home with items such as beds, tables and chairs and white goods, creating space for households to study, eat together and sleep well – basic functions that many of us take for granted. It will also give users of the store an opportunity to personalise their homes, creating a sense of identity.

The profit generated by ReStore will be used to sustain the operation of the pilot store, open up new stores, and to further Habitat GB’s work both GB and overseas. This means that the expected impact of this project does not just centre around this store but could impact beneficiaries of HFH’s work throughout the world.

For more information visit habitatforhumanity.org.uk.