Hubbub

What Hubbub does

Hubbub Foundation UK is a UK-registered environmental charity (Registered Charity No. 1158700, Registered Company No. 09038107) founded in 2014 by Trewin Restorick, Gavin Ellis, and Heather Poore. Headquartered at Somerset House on the Strand in London, the organisation designs and delivers environmental behaviour-change campaigns, programmes, and community-led initiatives rather than operating as a technology platform. Its portfolio includes the Community Fridge Network (700+ fridges across the UK), the Ballot Bin (a customisable voting ashtray sold in 43 countries, recognised with the Queen's Award for Enterprise), Community Calling (smartphone rehoming with Virgin Media O2, 35,000+ devices redistributed), Live LAGOM (an IKEA household sustainability programme), In Our Nature (a Manchester city-wide climate programme), Home Advantage (net-zero household research), and targeted campaigns such as Find Your Oooh, High Steaks, Eat Your Pumpkin, and Time After Time.

Hubbub's core activities span campaign development, community engagement, behavioural research, and program coordination. Operational assets include an interactive Community Fridge map, the Ballot Bin e-commerce storefront at ballotbin.co.uk, the Down to Earth newsletter and podcast, and open-source research reports. The charity works with a network of 2,300+ organisational partners and, in 2025, reported inspiring 3.5 million environmental actions (one every 9 seconds), supporting 1,160 community groups, and saving 11,482 tonnes of food through the Community Fridge Network.

Revenue is generated through corporate partnerships (with IKEA, Starbucks, Virgin Media O2, Co-op, M&S, Tesco, ASDA, Primark, Innocent, BT, Just Eat, and others), grants from charitable trusts and foundations (including the National Lottery Community Fund and Esmée Fairbairn), individual donations via JustGiving, and direct product sales of Ballot Bins. The go-to-market motion is partnership-led, with teams of approximately 25-30 staff collaborating directly with sustainability teams at major brands and local authorities to co-design and deliver measurable programmes.

Name

Hubbub

Legal name

Hubbub Foundation UK

Website

https://hubbub.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Hubbub is a UK environmental charity founded in 2014 that designs and delivers behaviour-change campaigns and programmes — including the Community Fridge Network, Ballot Bin, and Community Calling — in partnership with major brands, local authorities, and community groups to drive measurable sustainability outcomes.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Environmental and Sustainability Services

NAICS

Environment, Conservation and Wildlife Organizations (813312), Community Food Services (62421), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

Circular Economy & Sustainable Products (Reuse, Repair, Upcycling) (BPAGALAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Nutrition & Food Security (Global Health) NGOs (HLAJAKAH), Social & Behavior Change Communication (SBCC) for Nutrition (BPADAJAK), Environmental & Climate Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAM)

Keywords

• Environmental behaviour change
• Sustainability campaign design
• Food waste reduction programmes
• Community engagement services
• Circular economy partnerships

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Corporate Partnerships: Hubbub generates revenue through partnerships with businesses seeking to develop sustainability programmes. Partners include IKEA, Starbucks, Virgin Media O2, and other major brands who collaborate on environmental campaigns.
2. Donations: The registered charity accepts donations from individuals and organisations through JustGiving platform to support future sustainability projects.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Hubbub is an environmental charity that designs and delivers creative behaviour-change campaigns and programmes addressing food waste, e-waste, recycling, sustainable living, and community climate action. It works through partnerships with major corporates (IKEA, Starbucks, Virgin Media O2, Tesco, Co-op), local authorities, and community groups, producing measurable impact evidence. Its portfolio includes the Community Fridge Network, Ballot Bin, Community Calling, Home Advantage, and Live LAGOM, alongside grant programmes and research.

Product overview

Hubbub is a UK-based environmental charity (registered no. 1158700) that operates not as a unified software platform but as a portfolio of independent campaigns and programmes focused on sustainability behaviour change. The core offerings include the Community Fridge Network (700+ fridges redistributing surplus food), Ballot Bin (litter-reduction voting ashtrays in 43 countries), Community Calling (smartphone rehoming with Virgin Media O2), Home Advantage (household sustainability research), Live LAGOM (IKEA partnership), and numerous campaigns including Find Your Oooh (plant milk), Eat Your Pumpkin, Time After Time (e-waste), and In Our Nature (Manchester city-wide programme). Content products include the Down to Earth newsletter and podcast. These are standalone initiatives unified by Hubbub's mission to make sustainability second nature through creative, community-led environmental action.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Community Fridge Network: A network coordinated by Hubbub that brings together UK-based groups running community fridges to share food, connect with others, and prevent food waste.
• Ballot Bin
• Find Your Oooh
• In Our Nature
• Community Nature Network
• Community Calling
• Time After Time
• Live LAGOM

Products and services

• Community Fridge Network UK-wide network of 700+ community fridges coordinated by Hubbub that redistributes surplus food from supermarkets and businesses to local communities for free, preventing food waste and strengthening social connections.
• Ballot Bin A customisable voting ashtray that engages smokers to vote with their cigarette butts rather than dropping them on the ground, proven to cut cigarette litter by up to 73%. Sold globally via ballotbin.co.uk and deployed across 43 countries.
• Community Calling Smartphone rehoming programme created with Virgin Media O2 that donates unused smartphones to people in need along with free mobile data through the National Databank, tackling both e-waste and digital exclusion.
• Home Advantage A research blueprint programme exploring how UK households can be supported to work towards net zero, involving businesses and households to understand barriers and solutions for sustainable living.
• Live LAGOM A sustainable living programme in partnership with IKEA applying the Swedish philosophy of 'just the right amount' to help households save money and live more sustainably, with participants saving £1,440 on average per household.
• Find Your Oooh A behaviour-change campaign in partnership with Starbucks encouraging 25-34-year-olds to switch to plant milk in their coffee, making sustainable food choices feel easy and attractive.
• In Our Nature A city-wide climate programme in Manchester connecting the climate crisis to practical actions, engaging communities and partners in collective climate action from 2022 to 2025 with 52 partner organisations and 90,000+ people engaged in 2024.
• Eat Your Pumpkin A Halloween behaviour-change campaign encouraging people to decorate pumpkins instead of carving them and eat the pumpkin afterwards, reducing seasonal food waste.
• Take It Outside A campaign encouraging people to engage in activities in community gardens, connecting communities with nature and green spaces.
• High Steaks A research campaign exploring the complex connection between meat consumption, masculinity, and social media among young men, conducted with Beyond Equality, British Nutrition Foundation, and the7stars.
• Time After Time A Gen-Z focused e-waste awareness campaign in partnership with Virgin Media O2, exploring ways to make positive choices around electrical items and reducing e-waste.
• Borrow Cup A returnable cup scheme based in Glasgow that allows users to borrow a cup and return it later, reducing single-use disposable cup waste.
• Love Where You Live A fly-tipping reduction campaign working with communities to transform unloved shared spaces and reduce urban littering in local areas.
• Community Nature Network A collective of community-led green spaces bringing people together to enjoy nature, learn new skills, and care for their local environment, with over 450 members and 180+ groups with green spaces across the UK.
• Eat It Up Fund A grant programme offering six grants of up to £60,000 each to organisations with ground-breaking ideas to cut down on food waste in the UK.
• Down To Earth Podcast Hubbub's sustainability podcast featuring environmental topics, climate emergency discussions, and stories of community change-makers across two series, distributed on Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

Quantifiable outcome

• 3.5 million environmental actions inspired in 2025 (one every 9 seconds)
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

35 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• IKEAcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Partnership on Live LAGOM programme helping IKEA customers save money and live more sustainably. 1,500 'Lagomers' took part, saving £1,440 per household on average.
• StarbuckscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Launched £1m Bring It Back Fund to boost reuse. Also partner on Find Your Oooh plant milk campaign.
• Virgin Media O2coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Created Community Calling programme to rehoming smartphones with people who need them. 35,000+ phones rehomed. Also partner on Time After Time e-waste campaign.
• Co-opcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership on Community Fridge Network, launching 100 new community fridges. Support for Recycling Activists campaign.
• PrimarkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration on Durability Framework backed by research from Hubbub and University of Leeds to extend clothing lifespan.
• M&ScoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSparks Change partnership on food sustainability and community initiatives.
• EcosuretyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership on battery recycling through Bring Back Heavy Metal campaign, with Currys PC World.
• SamsungminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorporate partnership supporting Hubbub's sustainability campaigns.
• Innocent DrinksminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRecycling Activists campaign partnership on packaging and recycling awareness.
• TescocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNo Time for Waste campaign partnership. Households saved £16.50 per week on average.
• BTminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSmarter Living Challenge partnership on sustainable living initiatives.
• Just EatminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWaste Less chip portion trial to reduce food waste, with in-app features.
• John Lewis PartnershipminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSustainability partnership and campaigns supporting environmental initiatives.
• UCLminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcademic partnership on research and environmental behaviour studies.
• Leeds City CouncilminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership on In Our Nature Manchester city-wide climate programme.
• Mayor of LondonminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGrow Together programme partnership addressing social injustice in London.
• Barratt RedrowminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHome Advantage programme partner helping households work towards net zero.
• B&QminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHome Advantage programme partner on sustainable home improvements.
• TSBminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHome Advantage programme partner on household sustainability.
• Unilever UKminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerHome Advantage programme partner on sustainable household practices.
• Currys PC WorldminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBattery recycling drop-off points through Bring Back Heavy Metal campaign.
• Beyond EqualityminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partnership on High Steaks campaign exploring meat consumption and masculinity.
• British Nutrition FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerExpert partnership on High Steaks research into young men and meat consumption.
• the7starsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMedia agency partnership on High Steaks research and communications.
• Somerset HouseminorOthersHubbub's headquarters located at Somerset House, The Strand, London.
• ASDAminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSustainability partnership supporting environmental campaigns.
• LidlminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRetail partnership on sustainability initiatives.
• WaitroseminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSustainability partnership supporting environmental campaigns.
• Pets at HomeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRecycling partnership for pet product packaging.
• DunelmminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership on energy-saving tips and sustainable home content.
• DanoneminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership on circular economy of packaging initiatives.
• L'OréalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSustainability partnership supporting environmental campaigns.
• InvestecminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership on Air We Share campaign.
• eBayminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership supporting reuse and preloved fashion campaigns.
• University of LeedsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partnership on Durability Framework with Primark to extend clothing lifespan.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• WRAP: WRAP is a UK climate-action charity working on food waste, sustainable supply chains, and resource efficiency with businesses and government. It is the most directly comparable UK environmental charity to Hubbub given overlapping food-waste and circular-economy mandates.
• Keep Britain Tidy: UK environmental charity focused on litter, waste, and clean local environments, operating campaigns and partnerships with businesses and local authorities. Closely comparable to Hubbub's anti-litter and behaviour-change work, including the Ballot Bin.
• Surfers Against Sewage: UK environmental charity that mobilises communities around plastic pollution, coastline cleanliness, and behaviour change. Comparable as a UK-based, campaign-driven environmental charity working with corporate partners and grassroots communities.
• Ellen MacArthur Foundation: UK-registered charity focused on accelerating the transition to a circular economy through business, government, and education programmes. Comparable to Hubbub's circular-economy, reuse, and recycling campaigns (Bring It Back, Bring Back Heavy Metal).

Broad incumbents

• Greenpeace UK: Large UK environmental advocacy organisation operating campaigns across climate, oceans, plastics, and biodiversity. Comparable as a UK environmental non-profit with strong campaign brand and corporate/government engagement, but broader and more advocacy-led than Hubbub.
• WWF UK: Major UK environmental non-profit operating across conservation, climate, and sustainable consumption, working with corporates and government. Comparable in the UK sustainability-charity space and corporate-partnership model, but vastly larger and broader than Hubbub.
• Friends of the Earth: UK environmental charity running community-led environmental campaigns with a strong advocacy orientation. Comparable to Hubbub in mission and UK grassroots-corporate model, but focused more on policy advocacy than behaviour-change programmes.
• Soil Association: UK charity focused on sustainable food, farming, and land use, with corporate partnership programmes around food sustainability. Comparable to Hubbub's food-waste and sustainable-diets work (Community Fridge, Find Your Oooh).

Emerging players

• ClientEarth: Environmental law charity using legal action and policy advocacy to drive environmental outcomes. Adjacent to Hubbub in mission but operates through litigation and policy rather than behaviour-change campaigns.
• Green Alliance: UK environmental think tank and charity working on environmental policy with businesses and government. Comparable as a UK evidence-based environmental organisation, though focused on policy rather than grassroots behaviour-change delivery.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubebit.ly/30Rzyhh
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hubbub-uk
• Instagrambit.ly/3Kd4IY5
• TikTokbit.ly/43ItqGK
• Xx.com/hubbubUK
• Facebookfacebook.com/HubbubUK

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Hubbub