MEMBERS NEWS

Brighton & Hove Wood Recycling Project

Reclaimed oak rescued from landfill by Brighton & Hove Wood Recycling Project and the Wood Store will feature at Chelsea Flower Show as the main backdrop to the Good Gifts Garden; a beach scene invoking memories of childhood, created by twice Gold Medal-winning garden design team Adam Woolcott and Jonathan Smith, along with Cormac Conway Landscaping, who are hoping for the hat-trick this year. Visit the Good Gifts Garden at the Chelsea Flower show 19-24 May 2008 - Stand RM 11.

Brighton & Hove Wood Recycling Project collects waste timber at a low cost and then sorts the wood either for re-sale, firewood or wood chipping; it currently collects up to two tonnes of waste wood per day. On Saturday 21 June the Project is holding a giant Tenth Birthday Party at the Wood Store, Circus Street, Brighton from 12-4pm.

Guests will include celebrity supporter of the Project - designer Oliver Heath - plus local dignitaries, business leaders and community representatives.

This public open day includes live music, celebratory food and drink, activities for young and old, demonstrations on creating artistic objects from driftwood, and a chance to learn more about recycling and re-using wood. Celebrations will be shared with representatives from the 20 other Wood Recycling Projects in the UK which have been created in the wake of Brighton's success.

• Ten years ago, Brighton became home to a unique organisation - a Wood Recycling Project, the very first of its kind.
• The birthday party marks the Project's first collection of timber in June 1998; the beginning of an 8,000 tonne mountain since saved from landfill and recycled within the local community.
• The Project is financially self-supporting, and income is still derived the same way as in 1998; businesses pay to have waste wood removed, and the re-usable wood is sold through the Project's retail outlet, The Wood Store.
• The highly successful Project was voted the National Social Enterprise of 2002 due to their innovative approach of creating income, jobs and training opportunities out of waste wood.
• B&HWRP continues to put its income back into social efforts, and over the last ten years, has helped hundreds of volunteers gain skills, confidence and self-esteem to enable them to get back into work.
• Brighton's Project has inspired many others across the UK; there are now 21 Projects in total, all assisted by the National Community Wood Recycling Project, a hands-on business advice service run by Richard Mehmed, the founder of the original Brighton project.

Contact: Tel. 01273 570500   info@woodrecycling.org.uk www.woodrecycling.org.uk

Mid Devon Community Recycling Ltd

Mid Devon Community Recycling (MDCR), has been awarded the South West Skills 'Train to Gain Employer of the Year' award for its 'outstanding' commitment to staff training and development. The award, presented by celebrity TV presenter Ben Fogle, is part of a nationwide Learning and Skills Council project to find the best regional employers.

The 40 person strong enterprise recently introduced a 'skills for life' programme to help staff access the training and experience they need to get their 'dream job'

The enterprise grew from a small volunteer group and now the 40 permanent employees are assisted by a team of 11 regular volunteers and there is also a scheme to provide work experience training for six to ten learning-disabled adults.

Ken Orchard, Chief Executive of MDCR and a UK national 'Social Enterprise Ambassador' said,

"We're delighted to have won this award. We believe businesses can do a lot more than just making money. We believe in developing the people who work for us and this is a key driver in our commitment to training. However, we could never have achieved this recognition without the positive approach of our staff. They value the high levels of training we offer them and they're all keen to learn and develop.   Everyone should be empowered to go after their dream job."

Rezolve Kernow

The conference on Sustainable Action organised by Rezolve Kernow and Cornwall Waste Action had an impressive turn out of over 80 environmental activists.

The conference, which was held in Bodmin, fielded a variety of speakers who demonstrated that it is possible to take action to improve the environment, even at a local level. Prizes were awarded to six organisations to help develop their projects and a further £300 prize sponsored by SITA will be awarded to a community project.

Conference organiser Guy Doncaster from Cornwall Waste Action said,

"I am delighted that so many committed and enthusiastic people attended the conference. I hope that the day provided both inspiration and practical advice to those people who want to do more to help their local community become more sustainable. I am impressed with the existing level of activity but there is clearly a desire to get more projects off the ground; our competition winners will benefit from a range of expert advice to help make this happen."

Monmouthshire Community Recycling

Keep Wales Tidy (KWT) and Monmouthshire Community Recycling (MCR) are looking at littering and recycling in a new way.   Litter on the streets of Abergavenny, Monmouthshire, could become a thing of the past if a new scheme is successful.

Keep Wales Tidy and Monmouthshire Community Recycling have teamed up, with funding from the Welsh Assembly Government, to establish 'Reward Shops' for drinks cans and plastic drinks bottles.   Reward Shops have been chosen in Abergavenny to test out the limitations of this new scheme.

The twist for this re-invention is that rather than money changing hands, vouchers only redeemable at participating stores are supplied.  

Cans and Plastic drinks bottles were chosen as reward items, earlier litter investigations showed cans and plastic bottles to contribute more than 75% of all litter by volume and weight on Abergavenny's streets.   The idea that these could be returned for money to a local shop served as encouragement to the residents of Abergavenny to stop littering, and even act as a recycling outlet. Simon Anthony from Monmouthshire Community Recycling said,

"Anecdotal evidence has already shown this scheme to be successful on the littering aspect, other benefits are more wide ranging, communities take more ownership of their surroundings, and importantly recyclers get a good supply of material that would otherwise have been landfilled."

Contact: Simon Anthony Tel. 01291 430 550 Simonanthony@monrecycling.co.uk.

Cheltenham Centre for Change

Cheltenham Centre for Change has been nominated in the Community Project category of the Pride of Gloucestershire awards. The charity aims to encourage more sustainable ways of living and working and the better use of resources to improve the quality of life for present and future generations.

By providing a centre where people can meet and talk about ideas, it hopes to develop awareness of the issues surrounding sustainable development and to promote community involvement in practical projects. It also runs the Reclaim Project which recycles furniture and has a kerbside canvassing scheme.

John Mallows of Cheltenham Centre for Change said: "We've been to virtually every household as part of the scheme to encourage people to recycle residents its benefits. In doing so we've managed to save more than 2,000 tonnes of what would have been landfill.

We're delighted our work has been recognised in this way. It's fantastic news, particularly for the volunteers who work so hard."

The charity was nominated by Rob Bell, Cheltenham Borough Council's assistant director for environmental maintenance. He said: "They've organised the collection and recycling of a huge number of telephone directories and dry cell batteries.

In addition to continuing with these initiatives, they have ambitious plans this year to reduce the use of plastic bottles and bags, to promote recycling in schools, and recycle foil.

Without their efforts more waste would be sent to landfill and the town's carbon footprint would be higher than it is."

Contact: 01242 570111 www.cheltenhamcentreforchange.org.uk

Green Works

Green works has received the Queen's Award for Enterprise, the prestigious accolade for business related achievements in the UK.

Green Works provides a national service managing and recycling redundant office furniture on an industrial scale. Many high profile major firms such as Royal Bank of Scotland, Barclays, EDF Energy and BT are accredited members and have all donated their old furniture to the company instead of sending it to landfill. Green Works then either remakes the furniture into new items which are sold on their website, or they sell on recycled office furniture to other not-for-profit organisations, charities and social enterprises at specially discounted rates.

At a time when businesses are increasingly looking at their wider impact it is clear this innovative approach provides companies with the opportunity to improve their environmental performance and cut costs whilst delivering real social benefits at the same time. Colin Crooks, the founder and CEO of Green Works is proud that the company has been recognised at the highest level. He said,

"Since 2000 we have diverted more than 60,000 tonnes of redundant office furniture away from landfill and redirected second hand equipment to over 5,000 organisations including schools, charities and small businesses, saving them around £2.5 million in the process. This in itself marks Green Works' success but it is fantastic that this achievement has been recognised and this award will provide us with a platform to continue our work not only in the UK but across the globe.

We are proud of the company's development during the last eight years and this prestigious award pays tribute not only to our own work but to the support of our members and partners who have been invaluable to our success.'

The Green Works service is provided through a growing network of delivery partners, each established charities and social enterprises in their own right, that work to support their local communities and tackle some of the most intractable issues facing society. Green Works also continues to participate in a variety of employment and training programmes and in the process has created more than jobs for marginalised people across the country.

Green Works' impact also extends beyond Britain as large quantities of furniture have been donated overseas to some of the most deprived areas of the globe.

Colin believes Green Works shows that businesses can be both successful and socially responsible and hopes that their royal recognition will inspire others to act.

info@green-works.co.uk http://www.green-works.co.uk/

ECORRN

Essex Community Reuse and Recycling Network (ECORRN) and Essex County Council have joined together to demonstrate to residents how used furniture can be an excellent alternative to always buying new. 

Reusing Rooms is an initiative of ECORRN and Essex County Council, supported by Tendring Reuse and Employment Enterprise (TREE), Millrace IT, Oxfam and the Chelmsford Star Cooperative Society.

The two-week exhibition featured several 'mock rooms' made up of good quality furniture which were donated to T.R.E.E, an Essex community reuse scheme. CRN UK member Millrace IT provided a refurbished computer for the study and Oxfam provided books, vases and crockery to give a realistic feel. The finishing touch was added by local artist Susan Hilton who displayed her recycled artwork made from 'scrap' items found in local skips. The exhibition took place in the High Chelmer shopping centre in Chelmsford and ran from Tuesday 8 April to Friday 18 April.

Residents also had the opportunity to take part in an auction for each item featured in the exhibition. The highest bidders at the end of the two weeks received the furniture, with proceeds being donated back to the participating charities.

Essex County Councillor Tracey Chapman, Cabinet Member for Environment & Waste said, "Reusing Rooms is an excellent way to show the good quality furniture that is available from reuse schemes. Hopefully this will also encourage more Essex residents to donate their unwanted furniture rather than throwing it away."

Contact: Ian Leete 01245 437169  ecorrn@googlemail.com  

ECT

Official figures show that recycling tonnage in Ealing soared in January with local people recycling 1,536 tonnes through green boxes and 438 tonnes of food waste - the highest ever in the Council's history. And green waste recycling is up by 163% on the previous January.

Since Ealing Council introduced a £3.8 million investment package to improve refuse and recycling services in November, residents have ordered an additional 5,000 food waste bins and green boxes. The improvements to services, including the introduction of plastic and cardboard recycling, mean that there is now very little that residents can't recycle from home.

Councillor Will Brooks, Cabinet Member for Environment and Street Services said, "I'd like to thank local people for their fantastic support and additional recycling efforts.

The additional investment in services was intended to make it as easy as possible for people to recycle and we are very impressed that people are responding so quickly.

As a borough we've made significant progress in a short time and I know that if we can persuade even more people to recycle that we can be one of the greenest boroughs in London."

Jon Sharkey, Contract Manager at ECT Recycling said,

"As part of the introduction of a range of new services by Ealing Council, including a single collection day for all refuse and recycling, we now collect most plastics with the only exceptions of garden furniture, toys and electrical items."

Contact: info@ectgroup.co.uk , www.ectgroup.co.uk

Family First

Nottingham recycling charity Family First has received generous donations from national stores John Lewis and Richer Sounds.

The John Lewis warehouse, in Arnold, donated a range of household furniture including beds, sofas, tables and chairs to be recycled and given to tenants who cannot afford to furnish their homes. The items were unused returned quality goods which did not meet the standard to be resold to customers.

The Nottingham branch of Richer Sounds, on Mansfield Road, has also provided some electrical goods to the charity, including portable DVD players and mp3 players. These non-essential items will be sold in the charity's shops.

Family First manages 300 homes in Nottingham and established its recycling service to help tenants who are moving into a new home and cannot afford to buy essential furniture such as beds and chairs.

Most of the John Lewis furniture has already been re-distributed for free to families and individuals in need to furnish their homes.

Stuart Thomas, Office Supervisor of Family First, said,

"We're really pleased with the stock they donated- it was all in excellent condition, like new. They couldn't sell it because the packaging was damaged so they got in touch with us.

John Lewis was really impressed with how efficiently the collection went, so we're top of their list now for future charity donations, which is great news for us and our tenants. We'd like to thank John Lewis and Richer Sounds for their kind donations."

Family First has two charity shops, as well as their new department store, believed to be the first of its kind in Britain. The store, which recently opened on Alfred Street North, has two floors full of furniture, clothes and bric-a-brac, arranged in departments so customers get the most out of their shopping experience.

Stuart added, "The store is doing really well. It is proving popular with shoppers who want the convenience of being able to get everything under one roof."

Contact: 0115 9111473 patricktaylor@familyfirst.org.uk www.familyfirst.org.uk

Furniture Matters

Furniture Matters in Lancaster has been awarded £284,217 funding by the youth volunteering charity 'v' to assist in involving young people positively in their communities.

The project will be getting over 460 young people aged 16-25 involved in volunteering activities including; full time placements such as rebuilding cycles or building their own PC's, supporting young people to set up their own group and helping them to organise activities and events. Using the themes of recycling, sustainable transport and volunteering this project contributes to tackling climate change and local environmental improvements as well as portraying young people in a positive light. The volunteering opportunities will be available from April 2008

Furniture Matters is one of 152 projects across the country who will be funded by v as part of v involved, a new national youth volunteering programme backed by £75 million funding, which aims to inspire half a million more young people to volunteer in England.

Furniture Matters Chief Executive Alison Page says: "We are very excited to be part of the v involved programme. The funding will enable us to offer volunteers a range of opportunities where they can learn and share skills in a practical setting."

v 's Chief Executive Terry Ryall says: "v is delighted to be able to fund this innovative and youth-led project, which will enable young people to get positively involved in the Lancaster district.  

"Young people are at the heart of this new programme which aims to put them at the centre of our communities. Instead of seeing them as a problem to be fixed, we are giving them the chance to become a positive force for change."

Contact: Furniture Matters (01524 426622)

http://www.wearev.com/

Stevenage Furniture Recycling Scheme

Stevenage Furniture Recycling Scheme (SFRS) which works to support those on low income or in difficult circumstances by collecting and redistributing good quality used furniture, household items and electrical goods, are extending their established services by piloting a workshop. The workshop, Re-furbish, Re-use, Renew, brings used furniture back to life, diverting additional items from landfill whilst also increasing self-confidence and skills in disadvantaged learners.

Due to the assistance of staff and volunteers, SFRS each month supports over 300 Stevenage residents, encourages over 100 donors to recycle/re-use and saves almost 5 tonnes of unwanted items from landfill.

Contact: Faye Lloyd (01438 362900)

www.stevenagefrs.org.uk

Tree of Life Withanshaw

Tree of life Withenshaw are already carrying out a host of re-use and recycling activities associated with a range of materials from bicycles to carpets, IT equipment, tools, shoes, furniture, paper, in fact items too numerous to mention. In addition to this they now have a community café. Thanks to funding from Food Futures, the Manchester project promoting healthy, sustainable, enjoyable food for all, Tree of Life Withenshaw were able to open the community café and have now been awarded Silver Status by the project.

From a slow start the cafe is now buzzing. Its ambitious goal is to create a culture of good food in the city of Manchester, based on the belief that good food is enjoyable, safe, nutritious, environmentally sustainable, and produced ethically and fairly - no-one should have this right denied because of where they live, their income or their background.

2nd Chance Furniture Re-use
2nd Chance Furniture Re-Use Project in Nuneaton has joined forces with Goods Again to form a partnership to offer a greater variety of refurbished white goods at its Weddington Terrace warehouse.

Goods Again works with the prisoners at HM Prison and Young Offenders Institution Onley to repair and refurbish white electrical goods to be sold by furniture re-use projects such as 2nd Chance. Goods Again was set up in 2005 with funding from the prison service and from the Big Lottery through the CRED (Community Recycling and Economic Development) programme.   At present, 24 prisoners repair and refurbish items such as cookers, washing machines, fridges and freezers which are either rescued from civic amenity sites or donated direct by the public.   Prisoners gain skills and will also soon be able to gain qualifications that will enable them to be more employable when released from prison.

Peter Whitehead, 2nd Chance Project Manager, said "This is a really exciting development for us and one which we know is greatly needed by the local community.   Up until now we have been unable to meet the demand for white goods and all too often".

Contact: Peter Whitehead peterw@caha.org.uk 024 7632 6189

Cheltenham Centre for Change

Cheltenham Centre for Change's furniture re-use scheme Reclaim moved across town in early January and within a few hours of its open day exceeded a normal week's sales. The day began with a few words from John Davidson, chairman of Global Dimensions Trust and the Mayor John Rawson, sales then took off - even the buffet tables were sold to a local community group!

Project Manager John Mallows puts the success down to the committed efforts of the Reclaim team, mainly volunteers, led by supervisor Craig Dickson and the publicity campaign orchestrated by Rebecca Dobs at Vision 21, resulting in two near whole page articles in the local press, radio interviews and targeted leafleting

The new premises are located at the entrance to an industrial estate and are conveniently on bus routes and close to the station. Although the new premises are smaller, the focus has been on quality and this has paid off with a much brisker turnover and takings staying high enough to underpin most of the running costs.

As well as the landlord offering free use of his carpenter, plumber and electrician to get the project fitted out, Reclaim have also benefited from their position on an industrial estate.   Their location offers plenty of opportunities to spread the Centre's sustainability messages and Reclaim have received assistance from local businesses in the form of voluntary help and in a variety of other areas including fire training, industrial sewing machine use, donations of upholstery fabric and other goods - even assistance from a local garage to start a van with a flat battery.   "Maybe we can sometimes be too wary of the small business sector", says John, who is exploring ways to benefit from partnership with a commercial recycling company on the estate.

Contact: John Mallows 01242 570111 johnmallows@cheltenhamcentreforchange.org.uk

FRC Group

The past few months have seen both the FRC Group and Bulky Bob's win a host of awards including the Guardian Public Services Awards for Innovation and Progress. Now Liverpool's FRC Group and its bulky household waste collection service Bulky Bob's have taken home two more awards from the 9 th Groundwork Environmental Awards. Bulky Bob's picked up the Environmental Innovation and Technology Award and the FRC Group was awarded the Community Stewardship Award for Social Enterprises.

Winning in both categories they were nominated for at the Groundwork Environmental Awards, Bulky Bob's and the FRC Group are understandably thrilled with their success.   Alan Smith, Business Development Manager for Bulky Bob's said, "Everyone at Bulky Bob's is very proud. It's great to be recognised for what we have achieved, but our approach is to strive for more. We want to keep on finding innovative ways to make a positive impact on the environment."

Alison Ball, Director of People and Learning for the FRC Group was equally pleased, "We are delighted to receive this award that recognises all the hard work that our staff, trainees and volunteers put in to make social and environmental change happen in the communities we work in."

Bulky Bob's is part of the Furniture Resource Centre Group, founded in 1988 as a small community based response to poverty. The purple collection vans are a well known and popular sight around Liverpool.   The FRC Group invents business solutions for social and environmental problems. Now as well as Bulky Bob's, the group runs Revive store in Liverpool and Widnes to sell the furniture they collect to low-income families and also the Cat's Pyjamas, helping to create and supporting social businesses across the UK.

Groundwork on Merseyside took up the challenge to promote awareness of sustainability issues nine years ago by creating the Groundwork Merseyside Environmental Awards. The awards are a showcase event that gives community groups, schools, businesses and public authorities an opportunity to demonstrate that they are playing their part in the sustainable development of Greater Merseyside.

Contact: Alison Ball alisonb@frcgroup.co.uk 0151 702 0550