A FURNITURE donation station has been opened in the Wee County, in a bid to encourage more people reuse their old items.

Brought to life inside a converted shipping container, the site has been officially opened by Alloa Community Enterprises and their partner organisations.

The container, owned by ACE Alloa, had been left unused for a few years but has now been repurposed and opened at Forthbank Recycling Centre.

It will be open daily and is manned by volunteers and staff from ACE and the Wee County Men’s Shed.

The station will help ensure items that could be used or resold, including small wooden furniture and pre-loved items, are kept in good condition and workable order.

Anthea Coulter, trustee at ACE, has been coordinating this project with waste manager Glenn Stuart and is over the moon with their progress.

She said: “We know that many people, especially those who work, have small items they throw away at the weekend or when they are clearing a family home for example, and this now allows them to consider passing them on for reuse.

“We can only take good quality, pre-loved items but any wooden furniture, items with fire labels and bric-a-brac can be put in the furniture donation station and we will be delighted to see if we can pass them onto a new home.

“It is a significant step forward for Clackmannanshire to have this now in place and forms part of our collective efforts to recycle and reuse more and reduce the impact on the environment of landfill which is a huge cost to the council currently and will reduce emissions.”

The repurposing of the container has been achieved with the help of the LACER fund from Clackmannanshire Council and from support from the Clackmannanshire Council and Stirling Environment Trust.

The furniture donation station was officially launched during an opening ceremony on Wednesday, August 16.

Cllr Fiona Law, spokesperson for the environment and net zero, added: “If you are updating your home and have good quality items in good condition you no longer need, please always consider donating them to ACE who will always do their best to find them a new home.”

The drop-off point will be available during the opening hours of the Forthbank Recycling Centre until it is full.

It will then be opened and emptied by staff a few times through the week.

For more information on the station, visit ace.scot.