How reducing single-use plastics can change our future

In April, Unlock Next Gen monthly campaign focused on raising awareness and knowledge amongst Places for People colleagues on #PlasticFreeMonth.

Places for People were proud to champion the cause against plastic pollution, focusing on reducing single-use plastics (SUP) across our workplaces, leisure centres, developments, and property management companies. Our efforts form part of a larger commitment to sustainability, rooted in our Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) goals.

It's never been more urgent to rethink our relationship with plastic. Every minute, one million plastic bottles are bought worldwide. Most of them don’t get recycled; instead, they clog landfills, pollute our oceans, and litter our streets.

Why single-use plastics are a big problem

Single-use plastics are designed to be used once, then thrown away. Convenient? Yes. But they leave a devastating legacy:

• Only 9% of plastic waste globally is recycled.
• Plastics can take hundreds of years to decompose.
• As plastics break down, they create microplastics — tiny particles now found in our food, drinking water, lungs, and even bloodstream.
• Wildlife often mistake plastic for food, leading to injury or death.
• Our oceans now contain massive "garbage patches," threatening marine ecosystems.

The lifecycle of a single plastic bottle is a stark reminder: produced using fossil fuels, used for just minutes but polluting our planet for centuries. 

How Places for People is taking action

Across the Group, we’re making significant strides to tackle plastic waste head-on:

Identifying key sources:

We're tracking the top three contributors to plastic use across our business areas, helping us target the biggest opportunities for change.

Workplaces:

• Over 40% of SUP has been removed, especially in cleaning products.
• We’re phasing out single-use plastics from vending machines.
• Reusable water bottles have been provided to colleagues.
• Plastic cutlery usage is being drastically reduced.

Leisure centres and RMG:

• Trialling soluble sachet cleaning products to cut plastic waste.
• Early results show a 0.33 tonne carbon saving and 40kg less plastic waste in the last year alone!

Broader ESG commitments:

• Diverting at least 95% of waste from landfills at development sites by 2030.
• Refurbishing IT equipment to promote reuse over replacement.
• Improving recycling and composting access for customers.

Together, these changes aren’t just reducing plastic, they’re actively building a more sustainable future for all of us.

Simple swaps you can make every day

You don't need to be a sustainability expert to make a difference. Here are some easy swaps to kick-start your plastic-free journey:

At work:

• Bring a reusable water bottle and coffee cup.
• Switch to refillable pens and recycled stationery.
• Ditch plastic folders for paper or recycled alternatives.

At lunch:

• Use reusable tubs, beeswax wraps, or silicone bags instead of cling film.
• Bring your own cutlery.
• Buy snacks in bulk or opt for loose fruits and vegetables.

At home:

• Replace plastic bags with reusable totes.
• Swap bottled shampoo for shampoo bars.
• Trade liquid soap for bar soap with no packaging.
• Choose stainless steel or bamboo straws over plastic.

Every small action matters. When you make sustainable swaps, you create habits that ripple into larger cultural shifts.

Innovations to inspire

The good news? Exciting new alternatives are popping up every day:

• Mushroom-based foams and seaweed wraps are redefining sustainable packaging.
• Brands like Mentos have ditched plastic for cardboard.
• Companies worldwide are investing in plastic-free innovations.

Your plastic-free challenge

Commit to going plastic-free wherever you can:

• Skip the plastic bottles.
• Top up at refill stations.
• Share your progress with #PlasticFreeMonth!