Furniture4Reuse
Relocation of the Furniture Store to Simon Building in February 2023
We are now located in the basement of the Simon Building.
Opening hours are 12 - 3pm on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Detailed directions are in the "Useful Documents" box. Please also see this box for detailed instructions for collecting items (for home working etc).
Stationery re-use and recycling
We now have an official scheme in place to reuse unwanted stationery on campus via the Furniture Store - see here for info.
Latest news
See here for a tour of the store and what sort of items we have in stock (as of 18th April '24)
Please see here for a short video showing how we repair/renovate office chairs.
The Furniture Store has been shortlisted for the University's Making a Difference Awards 2024 and the Awards for Excellence in Recycling & Waste Management 2024.
F4R on Twitter
You can now follow us on Twitter! - Furniture4Reuse (@UoM_F4R) / Twitter
Latest items
We have a short video showing the stock we had in as off 5th January 2024 - Furniture4Reuse on X: "Take a tour of the Furniture Store ! https://t.co/XUwsNShuIg" / X (twitter.com)
Refurbished office task/swivel chairs
Refurbished chairs are available to staff only. We use an external company (Office Chair renovations) to refurbish certain office chairs chairs (that are not in a good enough condition to be reused as they are), so we need to recover the costs for these (no profit is made on this service). Costs will vary depending on the type/quality of the chair but in most instances, the costs are as follows:
- task chairs without arms = £49
- task chairs with fixed/looped arms = £65
- task chairs with adjustable arms = £72
Refurbished chairs are available to staff only - a cost code must be provided to allow us to recharge for these. Where staff need a refurbished chair for home working there is no charge. Please note that due to very high demand we are no longer able to provide free refurbished chairs to postgraduates for home working.
Refurbished desks
We use an external company (https://www.over2hills.co.uk/) to refurbish certain office desks. These are available to staff at cost price on production of a cost code. Current costs are as follows:
- 80cm x 60 cm desk (with screw on legs) = £65
- 100cm x 80cm desk = £79
- 120cm x 80cm desk = £87
- 140cm x 80cm desk = £95
Opening of the furniture store
The furniture store is currently open 12 - 3pm on Wednesdays and Thursdays. If you are a member of staff or student there is no need to make an appointment on these days but please bring your staff/student card as ID.
The contact number at the store during opening hours is 07920 283526. Outside of these hours please contact the Furniture Store Supervisor Peter Liddell via Furniture4Reuse@manchester.ac.uk or on 07920 283526.
Charities/external organisations wishing to visit should e-mail Furniture4Reuse@manchester.ac.uk to arrange to visit the store unless you are regular visitors/are already known to the staff. For existing charities please note the new visiting arrangements for our new location in the Simon Building and see the detailed directions/instructions in the "Useful Documents" box.
Please check this web-page for future opening times as these are subject to change due to current cicumstances.
Furniture for homeworking
We have a variety of office furniture that is available for staff to use for homeworking at no cost. Please note that whilst staff can take furniture to use for home working, we are unable to deliver to home addresses so furniture will have to be collected from the store on opening days (see above), or alternative collection arrangements made.
The items avaialable include:
100 x 80cm cantilever desks*
120 x 80cm cantilever desks*
140 x 80cm cantilever desks
task/swivel office chairs with/without arms*
* the above items are relatively light and will fit into most cars if rear seats are put down.
Disposal of unwanted furniture (University Staff)
Wherever possible, please re-use any furniture you need to dispose of using the following hierarchy:
- Ask colleagues or your Head of School Admin to see if anyone else can use your unwanted furniture locally.
- Speak to your Faculty Estate Team to see if they know of anyone else who might want to re-use it.
- If the furniture cannot be re-used locally, please contact your Building Superintendent to arrange its removal. In instances where large items or amounts of furniture require removal, a contractor may need to employed in which case there will be a charge for this service.
The furniture store & obtaining used furniture
Please see the Frequently Asked Questions document bottom right of this page for further details.
All unwanted furniture is now returned to the furniture store and items are available for staff to re-use free of charge*.
There is a wide range of furniture that is available, though this varies on a daily basis as items come into the store and/or are removed for re-use across the campus - watch the videos to the right to see how the recycling process works and what a member of staff thinks of the service.
Items that are assessed at the furniture store as not being suitable for re-use will be disposed of to a local furniture re-use company Upmcr rather than sent for disposal
* some refurbished chairs and desks are available for which we only recharge the costs we have incurred - see the FAQ document
we are now able to deliver the majority of items on campus free of charge. Where very large items or large numbers of items are involved, you will need to arrange removal via one of the University's removal contractors and are responsible for any costs involved.