Community projects receive a New Year boost

Tell everyone all about it; we want some wonderful innovative projects to benefit from our Community Waste Fund. Do   creative and sustainable project?  We would like projects that have captured the imagination of the 3Rs, Reduce, Re-use and Recycle to increase the recycling rate and continue to help with our ambition of zero waste to landfill.

We have supported 22 community waste projects since 2010, from residents groups running swap shop events to Social Housing Landlords working in partnership with Community Furniture projects to provide affordable furniture to people on a low income.

The fund, which is now open until the 15^th February 2013 is for community groups, charities and not for profit organisations that have a project which can contribute to helping their community to use waste as a resource.

If you think this fund is something for you and your group or organisation, then waste no time and apply.

Community waste fund is open for applicants

Let the summer of swapping, swishing, sewing and saving commence.

Our Community Waste Fund opened to applicants today and we are   looking to fund projects that value the pre-loved.

From sewing classes  to swap shops, we can all reduce the waste we produce and gain value along the way.

This is this fourth round of funding and we would like inspirational ideas from community groups who can encourage their neighbourhood to get thrifty. Up-cycling is the new pastime for people wanting to save money and be distinctive.

It might be swapping that funky skirt for a retro style T-shirt, learning new and useful skills at make do and mend classes or refurbishing furniture, revamping clothes or swapping garments at a swishing party. It will help people’s money to go further and possessions last longer, and at the same, benefit the environment.   

We want to encourage people to sew, knit, craft, and with a little thought and creative flair you can make something really unique. Turn your old jumpers into cushions, buttons into broaches; even create shelves out of an old door! Community groups can apply by visiting our funding page 

Look out for out for the up-cycling web of fame, which will capture what Greater Manchester is doing to make and mend. We are looking forward to seeing the creations.

 

Recycling gets another boost

For the second time this year we have awarded local community groups funding for waste and recycling projects. Six organisations have secured £50,000 of funding  between them to help us all waste as an important resource.

Three of the projects have an emphasis on re-using and recycling Waste Electric and Electronic Equipment (WEEE), so it doesn’t end up in landfill. The project aims to make people think about what happens to all of our unwanted electrical goods.

The other three projects include exciting stuff such as a partnership with the People’s History Museum in Manchester to raise awareness of how and what to recycle, a furniture re-use project with Trafford Housing Trust and a scheme to increase recycling in flats, to help residents recycle more. These community projects all combine to make reducing, reusing and recycling second nature here in Greater Manchester, and we love giving the money to  great initiatives.

 All of these projects are happening in an area near you so why not get involved see if you can help make a difference to your community, details below.

The fantastic projects:

Wesley – WEEE workshop

The Wesley project has received funding to establish a Designated Collection Facility (DCF) and employ a technician to test and refurbish small and large (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment WEEE for resale)

The creation of a new WEEE refurbishment workshop will increase waste electrical re-use tonnage and increase electrical sales and stock turnover by 200%. The project will build a skill base of volunteers able to undertake electrical refurbishment. This will create volunteering opportunities and develop an opportunity to share best practice.

Trafford Housing Trust – Rainbow project

This project aims to collect furniture, donated by tenants, or collected from void properties. The items collected will be refurbished and sold at an affordable price to tenants. The project will create jobs and volunteering opportunities for local people, as well as reduce waste arising through embedding up-cycling skills and encourage people to view their unwanted furniture waste as a resource.

The People’s History Museum in Manchester – Community waste and recycling education

This project will provide recycling facilities and information about recycling for visitors. It will help to reduce waste produced by the museum and visitors, and help to increase recycling and composting. The project will work with children and adults to encourage recycling behaviour in and outside of the home.

Mustard Tree- Free WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment) PCs

This project will build upon the success of Mustard Tree’s pilot project that collected and refurbished PC equipment. The funding will help to extend the service to cover a wider range of small and large WEEE. The project will increase awareness of re-use and divert at least 1000 tonnes of WEEE from landfill. It will also facilitate training for volunteers from a local IT company, including IT and 4 PAT testing certification to further volunteers’ access to employment.

Manchester Environmental Resource Centre Initiative (MERCI) – Up to Your Waste- Promoting recycling and re-use in flats

The aim of the project is to increase residents’ involvement in re-use and recycling, through delivering recycling and up-cycling workshops.

Residents living in flats will be supported to recycle right through the recruitment of 14 local recycling champions for each tower block. Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) and battery collection points will be set up to help re-use and recycle more WEEE. The project will make residents more aware of waste as an important resource.

RE>BUILD – Small Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) collection and the refurbishment and up-cycling of furniture.

The money will fund a pilot to assess the viability of small WEEE drop off points and promote the sale of refurbished WEEE, to help increase the amount of small electrical items that are re-used and recycled. Up-Cycling furniture refurbishment workshops will be also be available to the general public.

Helping communities to waste not, want not!

This week we demonstrated our commitment to the community by giving a helping hand to seven community organisations/charities in Greater Manchester.  The seven groups all received a share of £55,000, to deliver waste reduction and recycling projects, meaning great news for them and us! 

We, at Recycle for Greater Manchester, see waste as an important resource and what better way to spread this message, then through community organisations themselves. The projects will have a positive impact on the environment, but will also benefit local communities.

The projects all start before Spring 2012 and they range from furniture re-use, community recycling, IT re-use, community up-cycling, tenant led youth environmental champions to community waste art projects. All the schemes demonstrate a more sustainable use of waste as a valuable resource, and the possibilities of what you can use waste for, are endless.   

 The organisations that received funding include:

• Recycle-IT
• Action For Sustainable Living
• New Charter Housing
• Cartwheel Arts
• 2^nd Generation Furnishings
• Woodend Artists
• Development Education Project

Some of the organisations got together on Friday the 7^th October for a photograph, and this also gave them the chance to meet and discuss their projects. It was great to hear about the interesting, but varied initiatives. They were all over the moon about the funding and couldn’t wait to get started.

Think that the community waste fund is right up your street? Then keep your eye on the website and look out for the next round of funding in December 2011.

Neston Grove Challenge winners!

Congratulations to our very first Street Recycling Challenge winners Neston Grove. They took on neighbouring street Rostherene Rd and pipped them to the post, to claim the title of Street Recycling champions.

It was a close run race with only 2 wheelies bins in it! The biggest success was the overall increase in recycling in both streets, the bin put out rate before the challenge was 32% and after the Challenge this had risen to 50%!

Residents had to fill their blue, brown and green bins with the correct recyclable items and put them out for collection by 7.00am on 30th June. The bins were checked on collection day to see how full they were with Neston Grove residents being judged the winners having recycled over 24 full wheelie bins to Rostherne Roads 22.

When we presented Rachel Barnes a resident of Neston Grove with her prize we got to see first hand how the neighbourhood had embraced the challenge with people asking us which street had won and Rachel’s children showing us what goes in what bin and telling us tales of how they had helped Mum to sort the recycling for the Challenge.

Hopefully this Challenge will inspire many more people in Stockport and other areas of Greater Manchester to take advantage of the new and improved recycling services provided at the kerbside and at Household Waste Recycling Centres.

Do you live in Greater Manchester and think your streets up for the challenge? Then get in touch. Either leave a comment or email communications@recycleforegreatermanchester.com

Neighbours go head to head in the Stockport Street Challenge

For Recycle Week, Recycle for Greater Manchester and Stockport MBC decided to put residents to the challenge – a Street Recycling Challenge.

In Stockport since we gave almost all households a set of wheelie bins everybody has been recycling more, but there are still recyclables sneaking into refuse bins. Sometimes people aren’t sure which bin it can go in so it ends up in the refuse bin.

It’s also a case of changing long formed habits such as scraping the leftovers off dinner plates into the food caddy which will then be recycled instead of into the refuse bin.

What better way to encourage behaviour change and recycling than a bit of friendly rivalry. Plus an added incentive of a £20 shopping voucher for each winning household, all the residents I spoke to thought it was definitely worth a go!

40 houses on Neston Grove and Rostherne Road are currently going head to head to recycle as much as they can, using their blue, brown and green wheelie bins by the 30^th June. Believe me every bit of recycling really does count.

Did you know that aluminium foil can be recycled with your cans and tins? And Tetrapaks, that’s juice or beverage cartons to you and I, can be recycled with your paper and cardboard? 

Early indications showed Neston Grove to be just in the lead by 3 wheelie bins. That’s about two mown lawns, 100 2 pint plastic milk bottles (washed and squashed!), and 2 full sacks of mail.

Each street is keen to win, and residents are searching the cupboards under the sink for empty cleaning bottles, and clearing out bathroom cabinets of used aerosols. I’ve got a collection of empty shoe boxes if anyone is interested…….

I’ll be sitting in  my office waiting for the rush! Keep checking back for the final results…..

Written by Eleri Jones – Community Recycling Officer, Stockport Metropolitan Borough Council