RIGHT TO REPAIR: The Big Phone Store joins the fight

Introducing the UK Repair and Reuse Declaration

The Big Phone Store is proud to be one of over 20 British repair and refurbishment businesses to sign the UK Repair & Reuse Declaration. This initiative, announced earlier this week, has already gathered support from nearly 200 organisations and policymakers.

What Is the UK Repair and Reuse Declaration?

The declaration outlines five key areas where the government needs to take action to promote repair and sustainability:

1. Make repair more affordable – By reducing costs, more people can opt for repairs over replacements.
2. Remove barriers to repair – Addressing obstacles that make repair difficult or inaccessible.
3. Help people choose repairable products – Encouraging the production and sale of items that are easy to repair.
4. Support repair training and apprenticeships – Boosting the skills needed for a thriving repair industry.
5. Prioritise reuse over recycling – Ensuring products are reused wherever possible, instead of being discarded.

Why Does This Matter?

Repairing devices is essential for sustainability. Without easy repair options, devices are far more likely to be thrown away, contributing to unnecessary waste.

As the UK’s fastest-growing smartphone refurbisher, The Big Phone Store is leading the charge for more sustainable practices in the smartphone industry. By supporting this declaration, we aim to push for a radical shift in how people view sustainable technology.

The 5 Demands:

Get Involved!

If you agree with the declaration, now’s the time to act! To lobby your MP to sign the declaration, go to https://repairreusedeclaration.uk/email-your-mp/

Stay tuned as we continue to work towards a greener, more sustainable future for smartphone repair and reuse!

Full Declaration Text:

To UK policymakers,

The UK is the second highest producer of electronic waste per capita in the world, and on track to become the top producer. Yet we are falling behind other countries in support for repair and reuse to tackle throwaway products. Repair and reuse are central to achieving a truly circular, less wasteful, economy. They help to tackle climate change and achieve our net zero ambition, reduce living costs for UK households and create green skilled jobs.

We are the volunteers running community repair initiatives across the country, the organisations working to make repair and reused products accessible for everyone, and the businesses that are repairing, refurbishing and selling preloved items. Together we are responding to increasing public demand for repair services and skills, we’re advocating for a return to a strong UK fixing economy and we’re championing reuse to give products a second life.

We are working towards the future we all need—a future where repair is a thriving sector of our economy. Where products are designed to be durable and easily repairable by default and in which manufacturers actively support their products for as long as possible. A future where products are given a second life through reuse, repair is the easiest option for everyone when something breaks, and recycling is saved for the very end of a product’s useful life.

Community repair events are working towards this future, offering repair, building skills and boosting community cohesion in towns up and down the country. They demonstrate the public demand for repair services and skills, but so much more is required to meet this need.

We ask UK legislators and decision-makers at all levels to support repair and reuse to thrive.