Re-using a good idea
Charities are being invited to express their interest in benefiting from the proceeds of Warwickshire County Council’s third charity reuse shop when it opens in Rugby.
The shop will be based at the revamped Hunters Lane Household Waste Recycling Centre (HWRC), and follows the resounding success of shops at Burton Farm HWRC, raising money for the Shakespeare Hospice and at Princes Drive HWRC, which raises money for Action 21.
The county council is currently inviting expressions of interest from charities located in the Rugby area, to run a similar re-use shop at Hunters Lane HWRC when the site re-opens in the spring following its refurbishment.
The Burton Farm shop, which opened in July 2003, was a national first, pioneered by Warwickshire County Council as a positive way of reducing the amount of waste that goes into landfill while simultaneously raising money for good causes. The council is confident that the success of the existing charity reuse shops can be repeated in Rugby.
Cllr Martin Heatley, Warwickshire County Council’s Portfolio Holder for the Environment, said: “The county council is proud to have pioneered such a successful scheme. As a result, we have decided to repeat the exercise at the Hunters Lane HWRC in Rugby. We hope local people will support this shop the way they have supported the charity reuse shops in Stratford and Warwick.”
The shop will be required to provide a level of service agreed with the county council incorporating opening hours, staffing levels and other management issues.
A three year contract for the shop (with the option to extend for a further two years) will be awarded to the charitable organisation, which can run an effective public service through the shop, while showing what benefit they will provide to the local community and environment through their management of the shop.
Organisations will be asked to complete a business questionnaire to assess their suitability for short listing and the contract will be awarded on the basis of detailed business plans submitted by the short listed organisations.
For further information, or to express interest in the shop, please contact Tamalyn Goodwin, Waste Projects Assistant, Waste Management, Shire Hall, Warwick, CV34 4SX Tel: 01926 418064, email: tamalyngoodwin@warwickshire.gov.uk.