MKUH launches new initiative to recycle walking aids

Date: 10/07/2023

The Trust is delighted to have launched a new service where unwanted walking aids can be dropped off in the community where they can be reused, refurbished or recycled.

Currently, walking aids can only be returned to the hospital site, which isn’t always convenient for patients and their families. From today (10 July), patients will be able to return their crutches to three designated collection points:

New Bradwell Recycling Centre 

• Address: Newport Road, New Bradwell, MK13 0AH
• Opening times:
  • 1^st Oct – 31^st March: Monday – Sunday, 8am-5pm
  • 1^st April – 31^st Sept: Monday – Sunday, 7am-7pm

Age UK MK – The Peartree Centre 

• Address: 1 Chadds Lane, Peartree Bridge, MK6 3EB
• Opening times: Monday – Thursday, 9am – 4pm

Age UK MK – Home & Furniture Store  

• Address: 6 Burners Lane, Kiln Farm, MK11 3HA
• Opening times:
  • Monday – Saturday: 9am – 5pm
  • Sunday: 11am – 4pm

If you have a piece of equipment provided by Millbrook, please click here to return: www.millbrookhealthcare.co.uk/pages/equipment-return

This is part of our #MKUHGreenerFuture plan to become net carbon zero by 2030 and will cut the number of crutches sent to landfill – reducing both our carbon footprint and saving the Trust money.

Project Led Helen Tozer, who is Lead Dietician at Milton Keynes University Hospital, said: “Recycling as much as we can is important to our Trust and is just one small way we can help to reduce our impact on the environment.

“We know every year that the hospital spends a significant amount of money on purchasing new crutches and other walking aids and through being able to support our patients with community drop-off locations, we hope this will enable us to reuse and recycle more. We are really excited to get this project off the ground and would welcome any feedback from our patients for how we could look to develop the service in the future.”

Jamie Stamp, Head of Therapy at MKUH, said: “We are delighted to have worked closely with partners across Milton Keynes to bring this project to fruition and I am hugely proud of all the hard work and time, most of which has been voluntary outside of usual working hours, that has gone into making this happen. I look forward to seeing the difference this will make to our communities and patients.”

All crutches have a QR code on them, in which patients can scan to find out where the recycling centres are located. Once at a recycling centre, clear signage is in place to advise where to leave the crutches so that they are secure and can be collected by a member of the hospital team.

If this move is a success, there is the potential for further recycling points to be introduced, as well as looking at recycling other walking aids such as sticks and frames. The hospital is proud to be working with Milton Keynes Council and Age UK Milton Keynes to introduce this important initiative.

To find out more about our Green Plan, visit our website: https://www.mkuh.nhs.uk/about-us/green-plan

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