Darwen businessman on a mission to recycle and reuse mattresses

Council Leader Councillor Phil Riley has been to visit a mattress recycling business based in Darwen with big ambitions for the future.

Ian Jillings, owner of Green Sleep in Darwen used to work in the plastics industry, until one day he visited a mattress making company who questioned what they could do to recycle their plastic responsibly. This sparked an idea for Ian, who realised there was a gap in the market to be able to do something more eco-friendly with mattresses, rather than sending them to landfill or incineration.  

Since 2017, Green Sleep has been operating in the borough. Only one of six businesses in Great Britain who recycles mattresses, it receives them from local authorities, manufacturers, large hotel chains and more. Every week, 1500 mattresses are delivered to the warehouse in Darwen and the company’s 14 employees get to work.

Traditionally, mattresses are deconstructed to release the various materials. The outer layer,  called a ticking is opened and the materials inside of it are separated into different piles. These piles are baled into one tonne squares and sent off to various areas of the country, depending on where they can be recycled.

However, Ian has now found a way of refurbishing and reusing mattresses to create an even more environmentally friendly model. Mattresses that come in that only need a deep clean can go through a sanitising process and be as good as new. Otherwise, mattresses with slight wear and tear can be broken down, so the components in good condition can be matched up and weaved together with others, using a special manufacturing machine. All mattresses will be tested to ensure they are up to safety and quality standards.

Reusing mattresses in this way is called closed-loop recycling – where the product in its original form is recycled again and again to extend its life. This is much better for the environment as there is less process and less travel involved, reducing carbon emissions. It will also create 10 jobs in the local community.

Once complete, the nearly new mattresses will be sold to the public at cheaper rates than they cost to buy off the shelf.

Councillor Phil Riley, Leader of Blackburn with Darwen borough council said:

It’s fantastic to see a local company leading the way in terms of sustainability. We need more companies to take Green Sleep’s lead and find ways of recycling and reusing items that would otherwise be deemed for landfill. I hope residents will take this opportunity to also consider their own recycling habits and do all they can to support the borough to be more environmentally friendly.

Currently, only 10-14% of mattresses are recycled in the UK.

If you’re in the market for a nearly new mattress at a fraction of the cost of buying a new one, look out for Green Sleep’s new advertising campaign which will be launched soon.