There are two full-time Swapshops at Edinburgh College, at Milton Road campus, directly outside the Gather & Gather Cafe, and at Granton campus, outside the Students' Association at R101. We also run pop-up Swapshops and clothing drives throughout the year.
Swapshops are free and local exchanges where members of the college community can pass on things they no longer want, in exchange for something they need. All of the items available in the Swapshop have been donated by students and staff at the College. Some of the items have been worn before, but others are brand new and are all available to take for free. You don't need to donate anything in order to take items from the Swapshops, and if you want to just donate items, that's ok too.
These Swapshops aim to reduce textiles waste, promote reuse and create a circular economy in our community. Rather than relying on new raw materials to create more new stuff, then disposing of it once you're done, the circular economy is about re-using or recycling old stuff into something that's wherever possible to keep resources moving in the economy. By reusing things we cut down on the amount of waste that goes into landfill and reduce the amount of resources that we use in manufacturing of new products. And it saves money, too.
We accept clean and good quality clothes, shoes, bags, books and toys. You can leave any donations in the marked boxes which can be found in the Swapshop locations at Granton and Milton Road.
Although our team check the items before they are put into the Swapshop, we recommend that you wash any items you take before wearing them. Please be a considerate user of the Swapshops, we have thousands of students and want to make sure that as many people as possible can benefit from the items that are donated, so please keep the clothes rails and shelves tidy.
