A UK university that introduced a scheme to eliminate single-use cups from its campuses has been named a finalist in the Times Higher Education (THE) Awards.
The University of Chichester made the final shortlist in the Outstanding Contribution to Environment Leadership category for launching a system that encourages students and staff to drink from a reusable cup before taking it to a designated return point, where it can be collected, cleaned, and reused.
The institution teamed up with sustainable drinkware specialist Circular&Co in September 2025 to launch Tap&Reuse, a ‘frictionless returnable cup system’, in five café locations across its Bishop Otter and Bognor Regis campuses.
The intention was to make sustainable behaviour the default action. Users borrow a cup linked to their bank card and return it within a week at no cost.
Three-day average
To date, 12,225 cups have been borrowed, with 90 per cent returned, in an average return time of three days.
According to the university submission, this has removed 85,000 disposable cups and saved 6 tonnes of carbon dioxide in the first year.
Each cup features a QR code that users can scan to see how long they have left to return it and where to return it nearby. Users are charged £3 ($4) if they do not return cups within eight days.
Circular&Co provided the necessary equipment to adopt the platform, including installation, full operational support, and monitors, and automatically replaces cup stocks free of charge.
Reuse made simple
“The success of reusable cup schemes depends just as much on the system around them as the product itself,” said Dan Dicker, Circular&Co founder.
“High return rates are made possible when reuse is made simple, which is something the University of Chichester also understood and now thoroughly deserves recognition for through its nomination for such a reputable award.”
Winners will be announced at the THE Awards ceremony on 26 November at The Vox in Birmingham.
Other adopters of Tap&Reuse include the National Trust, which this year launched the platform at more than 500 sites across the country.
