Donate Books: Free Doorstep Book Collection
Free UK doorstep book collection
Donate & re-home your books – collected free from your door
Got a collection of books gathering dust? Donate and re-home them easily with Anglo Doorstep Collections. Our free doorstep collection service across most of England and South Wales makes sure your books find new homes, while supporting incredible charities and promoting sustainability.
- 100% free
- No need to be home
- You choose the charity
- Most of them read again
Books in numbers
Why your old books matter
A book on your shelf could be the first book a child has ever owned. Here’s why re-homing them makes a difference. The figures on children’s reading come from the National Literacy Trust, and the figure on book sales comes from the Publishers Association.
Sources: National Literacy Trust (2025), Publishers Association (2024).
Why re-home books
The Importance of Book Recycling and Re-homing
Books are valuable resources that should never go to waste – yet many end up discarded or forgotten, adding to landfill. By re-homing your books you keep them out of the bin and make sure others can benefit from them, extending their lifespan so more people can enjoy and learn from them.
If you want to find out why you should donate unwanted books and why it matters, keep reading.
How it works
Booking a Collection with Anglo Doorstep Collections
Donating your books is simple and hassle-free. Watch our step-by-step video to see exactly how it works. You book online in a few minutes, from a phone or a laptop, and we do the rest.
Book a date
Book a collection on a date that works best for you and choose a charity to support. It’s free.
Pack your books
Pack books in good condition into bags or boxes, ready for a new home. Keep each one light enough for a driver to lift.
Leave them out by 7am
If you won’t be in on collection day, just leave them on your doorstep, in the porch, or wherever you told us when you booked.
Watch for our email
The evening before, we email you an estimated arrival window and a link to follow the driver on the day.
We re-home them
Our team collects from your door. Most of our books are re-homed to children and readers who want a book that feels new to them.
The full walk-through, with packing tips, is on how do I donate my books?
What we take
What Type of Books Can We Collect?
We aim to re-home as many books as possible so others can give them a second life. We’re happy to take both fiction and non-fiction, including:
We collect
- Fiction & novels
- Non-fiction
- Cook books
- Academic textbooks
- Children’s books
- Household book collections
- DVDs and CDs: films and music
We can’t take
- Magazines and comics
- VHS and cassette tapes
- Records and record players
- CD and DVD racks, or bookshelves
- Books that are wet, marked, stamped or drawn in
Why, and what condition is fine: what books can I donate?
Good to know
- Books should be in good, new-like condition – not marked, stamped or drawn in.
- If you have more than 20 bags or boxes, tell us when you book. Each one should be no bigger or heavier than our drivers can carry on their own.
- We can only collect from home properties – not schools, libraries or charity shops.
Outgrown picture books and children’s reading are very welcome: see children’s books. For the rest of your home, see everything we collect, and if you’re unsure about something, our team is happy to advise.
Why donate
Benefits of Donating Your Books
Every book you donate makes a positive impact on the environment and local communities. Whether you’re clearing out your library or just trimming your collection, let’s make a difference one book at a time.
Free, and you don’t leave home
No car boot full of heavy boxes, no trip to a charity shop that can’t take any more. Leave your books out and get on with your day. There’s no fee for a collection, ever.
Supporting charities
Whether it’s children’s books for schools and libraries or novels for avid readers, your donation makes a difference. Choose a charity to support when you book – meet our partner charities.
Sustainable reading
Re-homing books reduces the demand for new ones, conserving natural resources and cutting the carbon emissions linked to book production and distribution. We want more demand for pre-loved books!
A second life
We give customers the chance to pass on their once-loved books so they benefit others – rescuing them from the tip or general waste bin.
Want to know more about our book collections? Read more here.
Our charities
The charities your books support
The money your books raise goes to the charity you choose when you book, and a large percentage of the proceeds goes to your chosen cause.
Action for Children
Helping to support vulnerable children across the UK.
Together for Short Lives
A children’s palliative care charity, supporting the families of children with life-limiting conditions.
Advance
A domestic abuse charity supporting women experiencing violence.
RSPCA
Rescuing, caring for and rehoming animals in need.
Or choose Ecologi instead, and your donation plants trees to help reforest our planet. Anglo Recycling, the company behind Anglo Doorstep Collections, was named Best Clothes Recycling Enterprise 2023 in the Southern Enterprise Awards.
Your impact
What Happens to the Books After?
Most of the books donated by our wonderful customers are re-homed to readers who will appreciate them. We sort them by hand at our warehouse and pass on what can be read again. Read about the incredible charity we regularly donate children’s books to.
Books that can’t be re-homed are pulped and repurposed into recycled paper – far better than ending up at the local tip. Every donated book goes wherever suits it best.
Follow the journey on what happens to my books?, and meet the new readers on who do my books help?
Helping the planet
Keep your books out of the bin
A book in the general waste bin can’t be read again, and it can’t easily be recycled once it’s mixed in with food and rubbish. A book on someone else’s shelf saves a new one from being printed. What happens to the books that are thrown away is on why shouldn’t old books go in the bin?
By our own estimate, every kilo of books read again instead of made new saves about 1 kg of CO2e. Read why on how donating books helps the planet, or try the green calculator to see roughly what your clear-out could save.
Coverage
Where Can We Collect Book Donations Near You?
Finding donation drop-offs can be a hassle – especially when different items go to different places. We let you donate all the different items you have straight from your doorstep, from books and DVDs to other things around the home, in one collection.
We collect from homes across most of England and South Wales. Most areas have a collection every week or every fortnight. Enter your postcode when you book to see your next dates.
Many councils also work with us, so your council’s own website may point you our way. You can read how those partnerships work on council partnerships.
Here are some of the main areas we cover (green on the map):
- Bath
- Birmingham
- Brighton
- Bristol
- Cambridge
- Cardiff
- Coventry
- Exeter
- Leeds
- Leicester
- Liverpool
- London
- Manchester
- Newcastle
- Nottingham
- Oxford
- Plymouth
- Portsmouth
- Sheffield
- Southampton
- Sunderland
- Swindon
- York
Living further north? There’s more on book donations in Yorkshire.
What donors say
Five-star reviews from our donors
Peter
“It was great to find a company that was able to take a large quantity of unwanted items whilst local charity shops were not able to. Excellent organisation, with good communication on collection arrangements and tracking of drivers’ arrival.”
Josephine
“I was very pleased with the service. The van was on time, and the driver was very efficient and friendly. It was a great way to donate all sorts of items that I no longer use. And I didn’t have to try and get all the items to a charity shop myself!”
Already used our service? Share it with a friend or family member who has shelves to clear.
Questions
Questions people ask about book collections
Do I need to be at home?
No. Leave your books out by 7am on your collection day and the driver will pick them up. If they can’t be left outside, you can tell us when you book that they’re in the porch, or ask the driver to knock.
Is it really free?
Yes. There is no charge for a collection. We pay for it from the sale of what you donate, and a large percentage of the proceeds goes to the charity you choose.
How many books can I put out?
As many as you have from a normal clear-out. Books are heavy, so use more bags or boxes rather than overfilling a few. If you have more than 20 bags or boxes, tell us when you book so we can make sure the van has room.
Can I give DVDs and CDs as well?
Yes. Films and music on DVD and CD are welcome in the same collection. We can’t take VHS or cassette tapes, records, or CD and DVD racks.
What if it rains?
Use strong bags and tie them closed, or leave them in a porch if you have one. A wet book can’t be read again, so keeping them dry really matters.
Can a school or library book a collection?
No. We can only collect from home properties – not schools, libraries or charity shops.
Can I book a collection for tomorrow?
If we are collecting near you tomorrow, yes. Tomorrow’s collections stay open until 4pm today. Enter your postcode on the booking page to see your dates.
Can I change or cancel my collection?
Yes. Use the “Manage my booking” link in your confirmation email, sign in to My Account, or use the Anglo Doorstep app.
More answers are on our frequently asked questions page.
Ready to donate your books?
It’s free, you don’t need to be at home, and you choose the charity your donation supports.