Track 2000 Recycling Libby Brayshaw February 2005
Track 2000 Recycling – Libby Brayshaw February 2005
Track 2000 Visit ReportTony Crocker has recently shown me round Track 2000, an amazing recycling project in Cardiff, South Wales, and I have returned home humbled, inspired and furious in almost equal measure.
The visit was a humbling experience because this incredible enterprise, started 13 years ago, began and continues with such a simple, caring, community-focussed and sustainable idea. Founders Terry Parry and Tony Crocker seem amazed at their success. Tony modestly says that he stumbled into founding Track 2000 with Terry Parry. He says he had no training to prepare him to start and run a charity and being naturally shy did not help much either! But Terry and Tony were determined to do something positive for their local community using the skills they had and combined this with a burning desire to save the planet.
Big companies seek this 'holy grail' - to operate effectively both locally and globally- and spend millions advertising their local knowledge and global impact. Terry and Tony have got on with making a real difference to the people in their local community in the best way they know how - by working with them to create a better life for everyone, including those with learning difficulties and disabilities. But their vision, passion and compassion extends beyond their local community - they are saving the world at the same time! This is classic social entrepreneur thinking. Why do one great thing when you could do two or three, or six or seven all at the same time? As well as wanting to do what they can to improve the quality of life locally - for the unemployed, the unskilled, the unfortunate, those with special needs - Terry and Tony feel deeply that we should take much better care of our planet and the precious environment in which we all live. The thought of landfill sites overflowing with the by-products of our wasteful society makes them angry. And the thought of 'wasted' human lives and potential makes them angrier still.
So the simple idea was born - why not significantly reduce the waste going into landfill sites by finding a way to recycle, re-use or repair - AND why not educate people about the benefits of recycling encouraging them to donate unwanted items to theproject - AND why not put repaired items back to good use for those in most need - AND, at the same time, why not provide training, new jobs and volunteering opportunities for local people? SIMPLE. A virtuous win-win-win-win circle for the whole community and the planet! As Tony said to me on the visit 'I believe that what we need most is simple solutions to simple problems'. What Track 2000 proves is that seemingly complex problems have simple problems behind them. If we can dig down to the simple problems and think of some simple solutions to address them, especially if we do so in an integrated way, we can invent really effective, sustainable solutions.
Tony and Terry battled long and hard to see their vision become a reality and their determination and sheer hard work are inspirational. They have created a truly remarkable award-winning social enterprise. The atmosphere at Resource House, right on the edge of Cardiff City, almost under the eaves of the new Millennium Stadium, is one of warm-hearted welcome, openness, mutual respect and quiet optimism. Everyone I met greeted me with a smile and a kind word. Filled to the brim with all kinds of household goods - furniture, cookers, fridges, washing machines - and with computer waste - all being stripped down for repair or recycling - the project is bursting at the seams. A bigger space is desperately needed and plans are afoot to find it.
The old cheese factory which they currently occupy is a rabbit warren of corridors, training rooms, offices, a call centre, workshops, IT suites - all upstairs - and downstairs a huge furniture warehouse, sales area and loading bay. Track has its own fleet of vehicles, including a newly acquired skip, to collect recyclable material from all over the city and beyond. Wood is also recycled and used as fuel in the huge wood-burning boiler which heats the project. Wood is also chipped - some of it dyed bright colours with vegetable dyes - to be used by the landscaping industry for mulch. Computer monitor casings are stripped, stacked and sent off for special processing and shredding. The innards are separated into re-useable or recyclable copper wire, processor chips, circuit boards and accessories such as key boards, printers etc.
Workshops train people to strip down computers, ovens, fridges and to put them back into working order - providing valuable and varied work experience including training in health and safety, warehouse work, forklift truck driving, record keeping and job seeking skills. All this is done in an environment designed to make learning a practical, non-threatening and empowering experience where people are encouraged to learn at their own pace, where differences are respected and where everyone has something to contribute. As Tony says 'Knowledge is power' and he and Terry are putting power back into the hands of marginalized local people by giving them real, on the job, training and learning opportunities.
I came home furious because it just should not have been so hard for Tony and Terry to find funding over the years for such an integrated, sustainable, community-building project with such impeccable environment credentials. And why are there not Track 2000s in every town and village across the country? The work Track is doing must be saving the local council and local businesses millions of pounds - not just by extending the life of the landfill sites but also by enhancing the skills and training of the local population. The number of people helped back into employment, the people most in need who have been given the chance to furnish their homes properly, the people encouraged and inspired to make a difference in their own communities through seeing what Track has achieved - the value of this social capital to the local economy is HUGE. Just look at these impact statistics: -
· In 2004, in a 12 month period, 65% of Track's trainees who came under the categories special needs/socially excluded/long term unemployed from Cardiff and surrounding areas, over 420 individuals, achieved full time employment outcomes and, of this group, 85% received recognised/national qualifications
· Over 2500 tons of waste was diverted from landfill sites or illegal tipping and was processed into reused or recycled resources
· 85,000+ individuals, families, voluntary/community groups received resources throughout South East Wales and the UK
· Over 450 items of IT/ICT computer equipment was re-distributed to a diverse range of low-income individuals, families, students, schools, community groups and small social business schemes
· 65 local schools received reused/recycled resources and environmental education assistance in curriculum studies and achievement of Eco-School status
· On average 350 calls per day are received from the general public, local authorities and the business sector requesting the Charity's community collection services
The Charity is proud to have been recognised with awards for its different areas of operations/services and is the only Welsh/UK winner of the Ford European Conservation Award. Others awards to date include Winner of the Regional Understanding Disabilities Award for Project Support, overall National Green Apple Award Winners for Electronic Recycling and Investors in People Award.
No wonder Terry and Tony received honours in the Queen's birthday honours list - and no wonder their project now does have the support of the Cardiff City, big business, the community and local people.
Track 2000's Mission is:
To improve the quality of people's lives through:-
· Enhancing employment opportunities through education and skills training
· Helping to develop a sense of purpose and independence, especially for those with disabilities
· Carrying out environmental conservation services, including recycling and reuse management
· Repairing household and commercial items for supply to those in social need
Track 2000's Aims & Objectives are:
· Environmental: to conserve resources by recycling, re-use and reduction of redundant/surplus household and commercial goods with South East Wales.
· Social: to provide services and good quality household good and commercial equipment to under privileged individuals, families and disadvantaged communities.
· Education/training: to provide and assist training and work activity within the project's Community Operations to enhance employment, rehabilitation, integration, independence and to improve quality of life. Track 2000 exists to help people within the community.
The charity has been created with others in mind, to help and advise, to instil confidence and create new beginnings for many. Track's philosophy is simple, but structured, to ensure that those with the greatest need receive our fullest attention and commitment.
TRACK stands for Training Recycling and Community Knowledge. Each area represents a specialist route within the charity.
Training - to enhance employment opportunities - including occupational and social skills training to help individuals integrate into society - applicants are encouraged from all walks of life - work trials, business placements and college entry courses. IT software, Clerical Administration, Warehouse Work, Domestic Engineering, Forklift Training, Computer Engineering.
Recycling: The three R's - recycle, re-use and repair - up to the end of 2003 over 200,000 tonnes of recycled items have been processed - extending the life of the local landfill site. Education to think of disposing of material responsibly. Collection made easy.
Community: people are offered a choice of furniture regardless of their circumstances - retaining dignity.
Knowledge: the key to opportunity - everyone has a talent, a flair for some type of work - diverse range of training routes - dexterity, manual, integrate people with special needs or learning difficulties - there to help all level of ability - knowledge imparted to schools, community groups and individuals gives them the option to reuse items rather than burying them in a hole in the ground Track 2000 runs its Back on Track programme to help local people back into employment through on the job training and support. Some of the ideas and principles behind this programme are:
Track 2000 History
Track 2000 -the story of two men, a load of rubbish, a Green This is the story of how two men, a load of rubbish and a Green Goddess evolved into one of the UK'smost successful and acclaimed social enterprises. The story takes place in Cardiff in South Wales and began in the late 1980s. At that time, Terry Parry and Tony Crocker had just achieved a major breakthrough in pursuit of their aim to set up a furniture renovation and training centre - they had been given a an old Bedford van by Cardiff City Council. Tony and Terry painted their 'new' acquisition green and proudly called her their Green Goddess. She was a godsend as Terry explains 'The Green Goddess was our lifesaver, she always started first time and never broke down, but she only managed twenty miles per hour speed. She enabled us to begin our project by collecting household items from members of the public'.
Tony set about applying for grant funding to help the fledgling charity survive. But the next breakthrough came with the offer of another vehicle from Great Western. This time it was a Ford Transit Van but there was only one problem - on inspection Terry and Tony found it did not have an engine. Undeterred, they gratefully accepted the van, purchased a second hand engine and turned to a friend, Tony Wong, who generously fitted the engine for them.
This was now eight months into the project. Terry and Tony were both still unemployed and were signing up for unemployment benefit every week to help pay the bills. They were under pressure from the Employment Services to find work. They were both registered as Adult Trainers and were expected to return to full time work. Terry and Tony turned to their local Member of Parliament, Alan Michael, for help in persuading the Employment Services to give them a six-month trial period in which to get the project off the ground before cutting their social security benefits. Tony approached the City Council for funding but although the project was considered to be of high priority the Council refused any financial support. No one said why and Terry and Tony could find no explanations for the decision.
Right at the start the project almost foundered. Terry and Tony knew that their project would provide a range of community and environmental benefits but were dispirited by the lack of support, the refusal to give any reasons for the funding rejection and the mounting pressure of being unemployed with mortgages to pay and mouths to feed. They were ready to throw in the towel and give up their dream.
The following day came an extraordinary intervention by their MP, Alan Michael. Alan had been asked by his Labour Party colleagues to put a question to the then Prime Minister, John Major. He chose to raise the question of why two men in his constituency who wanted to give work-based training to unemployed people and people with learning difficulties were unable to obtain funding to do so. John Major replied that 2.3 million people in the UK were unemployed at that time and that training organisations across the UK were working to train ALL people.
This spurred the South Wales training organisations into action and the next day Terry and Tony were inundated with phone calls. The South Glamorgan Training and Enterprise Council phoned offering a contract to train five people and within six months the contract was extended to twenty people. At last the project was up and running and Terry and Tony were now members of staff of Track 2000 Community Resource Services. Tony successfully applied for grant funding from the Urban Aid Grant and he and Terry met to plan the objectives for the next 5 years of the project.