Binned supermarket food will make Northampton couple's wedding reception a '˜binner' to remember

Nicola Hedges and Christopher McKenna are set to tie the knot at the Guildhall next Saturday, August 6, before inviting guests back to their house in Gloucester Avenue, Delapre, for a garden reception.

But the afternoon tea menu will have a slight twist - in that all of the food will have been saved from supermarket skips.

Nursery worker Nicola, 48, said: “All the stuff at our wedding will be recyclable and re-usable, that’s our ethos.

“We’re saying it’s rubbish food the supermarkets throw out, but it’s all still in date.

“It’s always been a big interest of ours, people throw so much stuff away but they don’t really think about the consequences.”

All the food will be provided by Elsie’s Caf’ in Charles Street, The Mounts, which only uses food “salvaged or intercepted” from retailers that were otherwise destined for waste.

Nicola and Christopher met on a popular dating website two years ago - though, as fate would have it, they only lived half-a-mile apart.

But the couple’s shared love of re-using and recycling extends beyond just the wedding catering.

Nicola’s purple wedding dress was a £34 bargain on Ebay and nearly all the flowers for the wedding will be donated from friends and family’s gardens.

And the garden in which they are holding their reception features recycled plant pots, four bug hotels, and ornaments made from reclaimed household goods.

In total, the whole wedding - rings included - cost just £2,000.

But Nicola says the recycling theme is not just about saving money.

“This is absolutely about making sure things are reused - it’s about showing what you can do with a bit of imagination.”