Big Clear Out
Donate Your Unwanted Items and Support the Nottingham Community
As the academic year comes to a close, don’t forget to make the most of your final weeks in Nottingham – from celebrating with friends to making memories at end-of-term events. When it’s finally time to move out, the Big Clear Out is here to help you donate any unwanted items responsibly.
The Big Clear Out is a joint campaign between Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham Trent Students’ Union (NTSU), UPP and local charity partners. It makes it easy for students to give unwanted food, clothing, kitchen items and home essentials a second life instead of sending them to landfill.
How you can get involved
Collection points will be available across halls from April to August, so when you’re ready to head home after the end of term, you can easily drop off donations while packing up your room.
You can donate:
• Unopened food
• Kitchen equipment and homewares
• Clothes and shoes
• Small electrical items
• Bedding and household essentials
Every donation helps reduce waste while supporting people in the local community.
Why it matters
At the end of each academic year, tonnes of perfectly usable items are thrown away as students move out of accommodation. Through the Big Clear Out, these items are collected and redistributed to charities and organisations supporting people across Nottinghamshire.
Over the past three years, the campaign has helped divert around 25 tonnes of waste away from landfill and incineration.
Food donations from the campaign are given to local organisations including Himmah, while clothing donations support the British Heart Foundation’s Pack for Good scheme.
Working together as a student community
The Big Clear Out is powered by students, staff, halls teams and local charities working together to make a positive impact.
By donating your unwanted items before you move out, you’ll be helping:
• Reduce waste on campus
• Support local charities and food banks
• Make moving out more sustainable
• Give useful items a second life
Before you leave halls
Once the academic year and end-of-term celebrations are wrapped up, take a few minutes while packing to separate anything you no longer need and drop it off at your nearest collection point.
A small donation can make a big difference to someone else.
Find your nearest donation point
Donation bins and food collection crates can be found in reception areas across NTU and UPP halls throughout the move-out period.
Keep an eye on NTSU and NTU social media channels for updates, reminders and more information about what can be donated.
