It’s a fantastic experience to volunteer with your team and give back to the community, and it’s rewarding to see stories of how furniture that otherwise would have gone to waste will be used by those who need it.
Support our Upcycling
Join our Upcycling Workshops in Romford, refurbishing donated furniture into quality pieces for social housing residents facing financial hardship.
Get in touch
At Habitat for Humanity Great Britain, we believe environmental and housing goals go hand in hand.
Upcycling Workshops
Only 2% of social housing in the UK currently comes furnished, leaving new residents already experiencing financial hardship struggling to find the funds to buy essential items such as a bed, fridge, or wardrobe. Our Upcycling Workshops furnish our properties with high-quality repaired and upcycled items and create opportunities for community members experiencing economic hardship to furnish their own space. By refurbishing items destined for landfill we give them a new lease of life, transforming them into high-quality, repaired pieces.
Volunteer
At our Upcycling Workshops, you will upcycle furniture at our Romford ReStore. Working in small groups, the day is tailored to your skill level and experience. Tasks include sanding furniture by hand, painting and varnishing, and you will work on small items such as a side table, chest of drawers or wardrobe. Sessions can be full days (6 hours) or half days (3 hours). No experience is required! We aim to place the upcycled furniture in social housing wherever there is a need; otherwise, we sell these items in our ReStore.
Frequently asked questions
Upcycling Workshop volunteering is currently only open to corporate teams. If you’d like to get your company involved, please get in touch using the contact form on this page.
All our upcycling sessions take place at our workshop, located within our ReStore – Habitat’s DIY charity shop – in Romford (RM1 1HR). Alongside the workshop itself, volunteers get the chance to see previously upcycled items on the shop floor.
Sessions usually run from 10am to 4pm, but we’re happy to adapt timings to suit your team – including half-day sessions of around 3 hours.
We can accommodate up to 10 volunteers per session, or up to 15 on a case-by-case basis.
No experience is necessary. Sessions are tailored to your team’s skill level and include tasks like sanding, painting and varnishing furniture.
Wherever possible, we place upcycled furniture directly into social housing for people who need it. Any remaining items are sold in our ReStore.
Yes – we welcome donations of wooden furniture such as wardrobes, bookcases, drawers or tables, which we then repair and upcycle.
Interested in getting involved in our upcycling project in London?
Please get in touch.