RSPB second-hand binocular scheme

Do you have an old or unwanted pair of binoculars, telescope, spotting scope or tripod which are in good working order, collecting dust in the cupboard? If so, we can put them to use in a conservation or educational project somewhere in the world.

Please send your items to the address below:

RSPB second-hand binocular scheme 
Unit 17 
St Martins Business Centre 
St Martins Way 
Bedford MK42 OLF

Please note - we can only use items in good working order.

Alternatively, you can take your donation to your nearest staffed RSPB nature reserve or regional office/country headquarters, or send it in via your RSPB local group, where your donation will be forwarded to us.

If you have any queries about the scheme, please email us.

When we receive donated binoculars, telescopes, spotting scopes and tripods, staff and volunteers check the condition of the items. Useable optics are then stored in the RSPB Business Centre until needed.

BirdLife International Partners and other organisations within these countries that have heard about our scheme send us many requests for equipment.

We do everything we can to fulfil each request. To keep costs to a minimum we often rely on someone visiting the country from which the request has come to deliver the optics.

We also keep a record of where we send the equipment and ask that the society/project agrees to help to stimulate interest in conservation, and not to sell the equipment for profit.

Since it began in 1985, the RSPB's second-hand binocular scheme has provided more than 12,000 pieces of optical equipment to conservation and education projects in more than 90 countries.

From Vietnam to Greece, India to Ecuador, binoculars and telescopes have found their way to projects in some of the world’s most remote communities, often delivered by RSPB staff and supporters. 

We have been able to provide equipment for a range of initiatives across the world that have helped educate people and protect many different species. 

Without it, the projects would have been much more difficult to run, as many of the organisations could not have afforded to buy binoculars and telescopes.

As they upgrade their equipment, lots of people put their old binoculars and telescopes in the back of cupboards and forget about them. This is a really good way of putting them to a good use.

The initiative has helped a range of projects, including equipping Angola’s first-ever bird hide, the chance for Tanzanian school children to see close-up views of wildlife at a national park and for park rangers on a Brazilian rainforest reserve to protect wildlife from illegal hunters.

For more information, please call 01767 693690.

The second-hand binocular scheme is helping hundreds of projects across the world. Here are just a few examples of projects that are benefiting from this scheme:

Useful websites

• BirdLife partners