Waste wood left over
from the creation of children’s playgrounds is being donated to a new wildlife
charity project which aims to reach out to lonely older people and provide a
vital training hub for young people.
Chester-based family
firm, Creative Play, which specialises in the design, manufacture and
installation of top quality children’s playgrounds, is backing a social
enterprise project called Create for Nature which has been launched by Cheshire
Wildlife Trust.
The trust is
converting an old milking shed at the charity’s base near Malpas into a
woodworking workshop to create indoor and outdoor furniture and other wooden
goods from trade timber waste.
Working with
placement students from South Cheshire College and other volunteer groups, the
proceeds from the sale of the items will be used to support the trust’s
conservation work.
James Harris,
Managing Director of Creative Play, whose father, Keith Harris started the
company more than 25 years ago, said: “We manufacture everything in our Chester
factory on Sealand Industrial Estate.
“Sam Salisbury of
Cheshire Wildlife Trust approached us via email with information about the
project to see if there was any way we could help.
“It seemed like a
nice thing to be involved with that would benefit the local community. I gave
him a ring and told him we’d be happy to help if we could and he popped over
for a chat. We decided to supply them with all the scrap timber generated from
the playgrounds we create - if good could come from it, we’d rather it be used
than go to waste.
“Sam has already
picked up a couple of pallets of material which will be used to build timber
products. We’re glad the material is being given a new lease of life while
helping people gain skills.”
Corporate
Partnerships Manager for Cheshire Wildlife Trust, Sam Salisbury, said the focus
of the project is sustainability and social engagement.
He explained: “As a
conservation charity, this is at the heart of what we do.We are diverting waste
wood from landfill and upcycling it into beautiful furniture. We also aim to
provide a social hub for older, socially isolated members of the community and
provide training for the young people of the region.
“To make items like
hedgehog houses, bug hotels and outdoor furniture that will stand the test of
time, I needed to find a supply of weatherproofed timber, and so made contact
with Creative Play of Chester, whose fantastic play areas I have seen all over
the region. When I discussed the project with Creative Play’s managing
director, James Harris, he got the concept immediately and agreed to help us.”
He added: “James and
the team set aside an area of the workshop to collect materials for us and when
I went to pick it up, I was blown away with the quantity and quality of timber
they were able to donate.”
The trust has
already used some of their first batch of timber to work on prototypes for the
scheme, as well as other projects like making bug hotels with local children.
Sam said: “We are
very excited to be working with Creative Play on this project, without this
kind of help, charitable projects like ours would be completely unfeasible, and
it’s great to see a local business dedicated to preserving the natural beauty
of Cheshire.”
All of Creative
Play’s equipment is designed and manufactured in Chester by the company’s in
house teams, who use state of the art equipment and each specialise in timber,
plastic or metal.
Creative Play’s own
teams install all of the equipment and surfacing to meet the requirements of
the client and their own rigorous quality standards.
