Greenford recycling centre now accepts small electricals for repair and reuse

Ealing Council has launched a service allowing residents to hand in unwanted small electrical goods so they can be repaired and put back into use rather than discarded.

The scheme operates from the borough’s reuse and recycling centre on Greenford Road. People book a visit, take items to the dedicated reuse area, and are asked to bring any matching chargers where they have them. Working devices that are simply no longer needed are accepted as well as those that may need attention.

Specialist repair organisations collect suitable stock. Goods that cannot be fixed are sent for recycling instead. Items that are successfully restored are then channelled to community organisations through donation routes, or sold at affordable prices to local residents via the Action West London and TFS websites.

Council material states that repairs are handled by certified providers working to recognised industry standards, and that personal data on devices is securely wiped before reuse.

Accepted categories include laptops, tablets and PCs; mobile and landline phones; small kitchen appliances; rack-mounted and blade servers; games consoles; small electric DIY tools; and electronic toys.

Councillor Dominic Moffitt, cabinet member for climate action, said the aim is to make sustainable choices straightforward for residents and to keep products in circulation for longer. He noted that many electricals are thrown away when repair and further use remain possible, and that bringing them to the Greenford Road site can reduce waste while helping local people obtain affordable equipment.

The council also reminds residents that items which cannot be repaired or reused can still go into the borough’s small electrical recycling banks. Anything with a plug, battery or cable should be treated as a small electrical item and kept out of ordinary household bins. Batteries should be removed and recycled separately where practical. Electricals and batteries left in general waste can cause fires when crushed in collection vehicles, creating risk for crews, residents, vehicles and facilities.

Items must be placed inside the banks. Leaving them beside or outside a bank counts as fly-tipping and may attract a fixed penalty of up to £1,000, and can also spoil goods that might otherwise have been repaired, reused or recycled.

For occasional needs, the council points residents to the borough’s Library of Things, which lends household electrical items and tools at a fraction of the cost of buying new.

The Greenford Road reuse offer is presented as a practical step to cut waste, support repair skills and local jobs, and improve access to affordable electrical goods across the borough.