Category: 3. Business

Pre-loved clothes, books and kitchen utensils that might otherwise have been thrown away have helped raise a staggering £1m for the British Heart Foundation.

The annual Student Moving Out Campaign, an initiative led by the Student Community Partnership (SCP), encourages students who are leaving their homes at the end of the academic year to recycle any good quality pre-loved items correctly. 

The campaign has been running for over a decade in conjunction with the British Heart Foundation’s annual Pack for Good campaign with Bath & North East Somerset Council first getting involved in 2015. 

Donated items provide stock for the British Heart Foundation shop in Bath and are sold to help fund life-saving research into cardiovascular disease.

2025 was the most successful year to date with the donated items raising just under £209,000, bringing the total raised since the campaign launched to more than £1m.

Councillor Mark Elliott, Cabinet Member for Resources, said: “It’s worth celebrating this level of partnership working between the council and the universities and colleges. This is a fantastic achievement and I’d like to thank everyone who donated and helped make this the most successful year to date. 

“The items left in the 15 temporary donation points around the city centre this summer raised an incredible £150,675. In line with our zero waste strategy, this work helps increase recycling and promotes a circular economy – where rather than throw products away we keep them in use for as long as possible.”

The SCP is a partnership of the University of Bath, Bath Spa University, Bath College and their students’ unions and with Norland College and Bath & North East Somerset Council.

Professor Cassie Wilson, Pro-Vice Chancellor (Student Experience and Sport), Bath University said: “We’re very proud to be part of the Student Community Partnership and to see the incredible impact of this initiative. Reaching the £1m milestone reflects the commitment of our students and partners to sustainability and community support.”

Professor Rebecca Schaaf, Senior Pro Vice Chancellor at Bath Spa University, said: “We’re delighted to have played our part in reaching this brilliant milestone, funding the important work of British Heart Foundation and encouraging more sustainable choices. BSU continues to hold sustainability as one of its core values and embeds this across the board.

 “For over a decade we have supported the Pack for Good initiative, encouraging recycling activity across the city, and we look forward to helping it to reach even more milestones in the future.”

Tim Reeves University Account Executive at BHF, said: “Far too many of us have felt the pain of losing someone we love to cardiovascular disease, the world’s biggest killer. We are incredibly grateful for the support from the student community partnership which helps British Heart Foundation (BHF) power groundbreaking research to save and improve lives­.”

ENDS

Windsor residents are getting a temporary break from the hard-sided container by-law this holiday season. Enforcement of the by-law will be suspended for two collection periods starting December 30, 2025, recognizing that the holidays usually mean more waste is generated.

During this period, residents will be able to place two additional garbage bags out for collection.  They must weigh less than 20 kilograms (44 pounds) and be placed on the ground beside garbage containers for the period of December 30, 2025, to January 23, 2026.  Please do not place bags on top of pails.  Regular by-law requirements, including the use of hard-sided containers, will resume January 27, 2026.

Please have your garbage at the curb by 6:00 a.m. on your collection day. For your collection day, refer to your Waste Collection Schedule on CityWindsor.ca or call 311 for more information.

Residents are reminded that collection crews will not pick up furniture, appliances, electronics, loose material or household chemical waste.  

The Public Drop Off Depot located at Central and E. C. Row is open Monday to Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. and Saturday’s from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. for the self disposal of garbage, red and blue box recyclables, cardboard, appliances, renovation material, tires and yard waste. Tipping fees may apply. The Depot is closed December 24, 25, 26 and January 1.   

Information on waste collection schedules is found in your Collection Calendar or by visiting our Waste Collection Schedule Page.    

The Bloomington Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on January 15, 2026, at 6:00pm in the Council Chambers at Bloomington Civic Plaza, 1800 West Old Shakopee Road, Bloomington, Minnesota, 55431, or by electronic means as permitted by State law, to consider Case #PL2025-181 a CUP for a cannabis manufacturing facility in an existing industrial building. 

Review information and materials at www.blm.mn/notices.

To watch or listen to the meeting or to provide testimony: 

1. Attend in person
2. Watch BTV (Comcast channels 859 or 14)
3. Watch online at blm.mn/btv-live or the City’s YouTube Channel: blm.mn/youtube
4. Participate via phone (testimony for public hearings only) by dialing 1-415-655-0001. Enter the access code: 2866 173 2795 and the password: 7526#. Press *3 to “raise your hand” to indicate a desire to speak; your line will remain muted until it is your turn. When it is your turn to speak, the meeting operator will call on you by the first six digits of your phone number and will unmute your line. Listen for notification that your line has been unmuted and state your name before speaking. (Note: long-distance call. Consider calling methods to reduce or eliminate long distance charges.)

To ensure City staff have adequate time to disseminate your email or voicemail testimony to the Planning Commission, please submit it by noon on January 15, 2026.  Be sure to include the name of the specific agenda item you are providing testimony for.

Further information
For more information or to submit comments, contact Kareem Sherard, Planning Technician, 1800 West Old Shakopee Road, Bloomington, MN 55431-3027, (952) 563-4739 or ksherard@bloomingtonmn.gov.

The Bloomington Planning Commission will hold a public hearing on January 15, 2026, at 6:00pm in the Council Chambers at Bloomington Civic Plaza, 1800 West Old Shakopee Road, Bloomington, Minnesota, 55431, or by electronic means as permitted by State law, to consider Case #PL2025-186 a CUP & FSBP for a convenience facility with fuel sales at 1050 and 1000 West 94th St.

Review information and materials at www.blm.mn/notices.

To watch or listen to the meeting or to provide testimony: 

1. Attend in person
2. Watch BTV (Comcast channels 859 or 14)
3. Watch online at blm.mn/btv-live or the City’s YouTube Channel: blm.mn/youtube
4. Participate via phone (testimony for public hearings only) by dialing 1-415-655-0001. Enter the access code: 2866 173 2795 and the password: 7526#. Press *3 to “raise your hand” to indicate a desire to speak; your line will remain muted until it is your turn. When it is your turn to speak, the meeting operator will call on you by the first six digits of your phone number and will unmute your line. Listen for notification that your line has been unmuted and state your name before speaking. (Note: long-distance call. Consider calling methods to reduce or eliminate long distance charges.)

To ensure City staff have adequate time to disseminate your email or voicemail testimony to the Planning Commission, please submit it by noon on January 15, 2026.  Be sure to include the name of the specific agenda item you are providing testimony for.

Further information
For more information or to submit comments, contact Kareem Sherard, Planning Technician, 1800 West Old Shakopee Road, Bloomington, MN 55431-3027, (952) 563-4739 or ksherard@bloomingtonmn.gov.