CUSTOMER STORIES: Recycling IT Made Easy for Age UK

"I definitely recommend Stone Group to other businesses"

AgeUK Richmond is a local charity working in the community to support older people, their families and carers. As an independent charity, it has been working in the local community for over 50 years and is supported by 50 dedicated staff and 140 volunteers helping to deliver services and activities for older people in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames - from
Hampton in the West to Barnes in the East. With 15.1% of the population aged over 65, it has one of the highest proportion of older people amongst London boroughs. Like many charities, AgeUK Richmond is facing many funding challenges and is likely see further cuts to funding from health & social care commissioners, which currently constitutes over half of its income, at a time when staffing and property/overhead costs are rising relativelysharply.

Rob Burton is the Chief Executive Officer and said: "In addition to finding other sources of income we must also find funding effiencies and innovations to continue to be sustainable and provide quality services in the longer term."

Stone 360® App: Making IT Recycling Simple

After having a full IT upgrade and migrating to the cloud, the charity found itself with a room full of old equipment including monitors, towers and ancillaries as well as scanners and photocopiers. “We did offer our equipment to other groups in the area such as schools, but as it was about 15 years old, we literally couldn’t give it away! A supplier suggested we get in touch with Stone Group.”

Stone directed Rob to its new recycling app - Stone 360®. This revolutionary mobile app makes it easy for any organisation to arrafor the safe collection and disposal of IT equipment with a few simple clicks. After having downloaded the Stone 360® app Rob inputted the relevant data. “We were at a really busy time at work and about to move offices and I was keen to ensure that whatever I had to do was quick and efficient. “The app could not have been easier to use, it was really intuitive and I inputted all the necessary information in less than five minutes. Within 24 hours Stone came back to me with a date and time for the collection.”

The Stone 360® app is designed to ensure Stone’s IT recycling service is as simple to use as possible. As well as securely managing your end-of-life tech and meeting any sustainability goals
your company has, the Stone 360® app also offers rewards and boosted rebates for users doing their bit to protect the environment.

“As we were due to move our head office, it was really important the collection happened when Stone said it would,” said Rob. “I need not have worried, the GPS tracked Stone vehicle fitted with CCTV arrived on time and the security cleared drivers were really friendly and professional. We were working under Covid rules at the time and they ensured the guidelines were strictly
adhered to.

“We found we had about 40 phones and other bits and pieces that we wanted removed but had not listed on the app and so I was a bit worried the team wouldn’t take them. However, they were happy to add them to the list and it was no problem at all.”

Sensitive Data Security Erased

Much of the old equipment contained sensitive data including client and financial information so the charity needed reassurance this would be securely erased. Stone Group has its own award winning, fully accredited IT recycling facility where the highest security standards ensure client data is protected. Stone is one of a select number of companies that uses Blancco, an industry leading software which works to government approved CESG standards and disposes of data to strict GDPR standards. Through the app, clients can access all the necessary paperwork – audit and a certificate of disposal so they are confident in the safe disposal of their data.

“The security of data was reassuring,” said Rob, “the legal disposal of data was one of the main reasons for working with Stone Group and having that peace of mind was important.”

Small Boost to Charity Funds

As funds are always front of mind for a charity, Rob was also delighted to learn that the service provided by Stone was totally free of charge. In fact, he was pleasantly surprised to receive a small rebate from his recycled equipment. “Any additional funds we can put back into the charity is a bonus,” said Rob. “Stone managed to release a small amount of value from our old kit and,
of course, because they have zero commitment to landfill, it’s good to know that we were able to dispose of our IT responsibly. “Recycling our old IT was remarkably simple thanks to Stone – I couldn’t believe it was so stress-free. An easy to use app, free collection, money back and good for the environment – what’s not to love?”