No Floor No More combines sustainability with community action

No Floor No More is an initiative based in St Albans which helps people on lower incomes and those looking to buy pre-loved goods to furnish and replace the carpets in their homes.

The initiative was started over two years ago to support people moving into social housing. When social housing is re-issued, the property must be stripped bare. Properties are stripped no matter the condition of the existing flooring, leaving tenants without the bare essentials. Tenants often are unable to fund new flooring, and therefore thousands of households are living with bare floorboards or concrete.

No Floor No More looked to support tenants through this process by reusing donated furniture and carpeting to help them feel at home as quickly as possible. To date they have supported over 1000 families move into their new homes and have now widened their target audience to include other people on lower incomes.

This vital work has been recognised with several awards, including the Green Award in the Chamber of Commerce Inspiring Hertfordshire Awards 2024.

Recognising sustainable practice

At Hertfordshire County Council, we have supported the great work of No Floor No More through £3,205 in match funding as part of our Sustainable Hertfordshire Fund.

The fund, which is now closed, supported local initiatives that help deliver our sustainability ambitions. We especially looked to support initiatives that had additional positive benefits for Hertfordshire communities.

No Floor No More ticked these boxes on both counts. The focus on reusing flooring and furnishings helps reduce the amount of useable goods entering the waste system, supporting our Sustainable Hertfordshire ambition to send nothing to landfill by 2030.

Tanya Pascual, Community Engagement Programme Manager for Sustainable Hertfordshire said about No Floor No More: