Household Items

When an electrical or electronic item stops working or is no longer needed, it does not have to be thrown away. Here is advice on how and where to get it repaired and where to pass on old items.

Repairing broken items

Repair Cafés are events where north London residents can bring along old or damaged items to be fixed by repair specialists for free. Not only will you get an item fixed, but it is possible to learn how to repair things yourself and how they are made.

Ifixit is an open source website, providing a repair guide for almost everything. 

There are also a number of businesses in north London that will repair your broken item for you. The Electrical Repair Directory, run by The Restart Project and funded by the North London Waste Authority (NLWA) North London Community Fund, is an online database with a mapping and search facility to find reliable repair businesses in the north London area.

Reuse

Electrical items that are still in working order but are no longer needed can be passed on for reuse by someone else.

The Reuse Network is a great way to find local reuse centres in north London where you can donate unwanted items, which can then be sold at affordable prices to help those in need.

NLWA also runs the Reuse shop, which accept unwanted items that can still be used. These can be found at the reuse and recycling centre on Kings Road in Waltham Forest. Please check the latest information on opening hours before visiting the Reuse shop.

Charities such as Sue Ryder and British Heart Foundation also accept electrical items to sell in their shops. However, not all items will be accepted. Check their websites to see what can be donated.

North London’s reuse and recycling centres also accept leftover paint. We allow it to be collected by other residents, free of charge, and work with community partners (such as the Forest Recycling Project) to redistribute it to the community. 

You can visit our reclaimed paint campaign page to learn more about how you can use reclaimed paint, and some of the great art projects we’ve been able to support.