Spring, sofas and sewing house clearance stories

I feel that spring is in the air as I walk my beautiful Old English sheepdogs along the Bognor Regis seafront along to Felpham, home of William Blake’s ‘Jerusalem’ and ending up in Elmer Sands – a very special place with impressive sea defences.

I have to say a huge thank you to all the staff at St Richards Hospital in Chichester – we have a family member who is now under palliative care in the hospital. His treatment and the compassionate way the staff are is truly unbelievable. I have to say that if I was in government, I would do all I could to get all NHS staff a decent and realistic pay increase. Before St Richards he was in the fantastic Bognor Memorial Hospital which again, I just want to say a huge thank you to all the staff.

Back to Howell House Clearance and the problems with disposing of waste under the new Persistent Organic Pollutants legislation. These are new directives making it illegal for all landfill sites to refuse sofas, soft-furnished chairs, foam filled office chairs and any other furniture with the said foam filling. It is causing absolute chaos with waste companies and the large commercial ones imposing huge fees like £50 a sofa and £25 a chair.

I went to quote for a clearance in Sidlesham on the Selsey Road south of Chichester and with the new regulations to clear just the sofas etc was £350. In some cases, clients can’t pay this.

I was in Midhurst earlier in the week and, sure enough, in a layby was two sofas and a fridge-freezer. I purposely drove back through Petworth and Duncton and in a layby another huge pile of flytipping, including many soft furnishings. The government have not thought this through, and things just can’t go on the way it is. The large companies, such as South Coast Skips at Ford and TG Waste at Yapton need to help us waste carriers with more affordable fees otherwise all that’s going to happen is more and more horrible flytipping. That’s my big moan over.

Sewing the seeds of love

I was called to a lovely client in West Wittering – the family were clearing their mother’s ex-local authority three-bed semi. These old council houses are always well-built properties with large gardens and, of course, when most of them were built it was always off a large road with plenty of room. We were clearing one in Lavant near Chichester recently and we were able to get two large vans in the drive –amazing. Yet, in Littlehampton earlier in the week, I could not get our large van down a street as, with new-build properties, all the cars were doubled parked – it was a real nightmare.

The property in West Wittering had been the family home for over 60 years and the client’s mother had two loves apart, obviously, from her family – cats and everything to do with sewing and embroidery – and all things attached. She had lost her husband some years ago and the two downstairs rooms were like handicraft heaven! They were full of all sorts of everything, including over thirty sewing machines both old and new. Her other love had been her cats, although having many throughout her life she only had one at home when she sadly passed away.

I understand the cat found a new home through the cat and rabbit rescue centre in Selsey which is a fantastic, small, local charity with many good volunteers. I have donated blankets and towels from a clearance in Arundel recently. I do think it’s very daunting for any family to be confronted by rooms full to bursting with items that may have a value and a practical use for someone else and fortunately younger members of the family used their knowledge of the internet and Facebook they hooked up with a charity in Emsworth who were only too pleased to take all the sewing and clothes making items including the sewing machines. Through a contact in Chichester, the goods were to be taken to a storage facility in West Chiltington and eventually all these good were to be taken to Poland and then on to Ukraine where volunteers make, mend and make-do all clothing for the many poor people who literally have had their lives torn apart by the war.

The rest of the clearance was quite normal, and I was able to keep my costs down as I found a lady in Storrington who bought all the various ceramics and cat accessories. When I delivered them, it filled her shed and summer house – I’m not sure her husband was very happy with her Facebook marketplace purchases!

I recently completed a clearance in Bosham where the firm of instructing solicitors in Selsey asked me to arrange for Strides Auction House in Chichester to attend to value some paintings and silver. It was a tiny cottage, but I think the paintings and silver had a high valuation. It’s always worth getting it checked out, even if they have been in the family for many years. I remember another house clearance company clearing a property in Storrington and a small oil painting was put into auction at Billingshurst and made £40,000 so there are valuable items out there!

Off to Arundel to finish a retirement flat and have a garage to clear in Felpham later in the week. Thank you for taking the time to read my blog.