Farmers Market Celebrates 10 years

 

The Colchester Farmers Market celebrates its 10th Birthday on Friday the 5th July.

Andrew Wilkinson of en-form who runs the Farmers Market said ‘At its peak we had 28 stalls and over 900 customers which coincided with the great interest in local food issues a few years ago. In common with the rest of the economy and other local companies the Farmers Market has not done quite so well in recent years as customers have had to tighten their belts. However there is still a wide range of locally produced food available, not only your basic fruit, veg, meat and fish but specialist and more unusual treats to try’.

There is still a lot of interest in buying quality locally produced food particularly in the wake of the Horsemeat scandal.  Although  our local Farmers have had a tough time recently with challenging weather conditions and many well loved local traders have had to give up recently the Farmers Market has every intention of being here for another 10 years.

The Farmers Market will be held on Friday the 5th July at the Colchester Arts Centre from 9.30 am to 12.30 pm.

Bangers and Cash - Local Charity wants your old Banger

Colchester based Environment Charity, en-form is asking the public to donate their old unwanted cars for cash as part of a novel fund-raising scheme run by the Giveacar social enterprise.

Andrew Wilkinson of en-form said ‘This is a simple and effective way of attracting a new source of much needed donations as well as reducing the amount of unwanted or unused cars lying around. As an environment Charity we welcome any scheme disposing of old cars, particularly those that have failed their MOT in an environmentally friendly way and at the same time making it easy for owners. A win –win situation’

Regardless of their condition unwanted cars are collected free-of-charge nationwide by Giveacar and either sold through an online auction, or disposed of in an environmentally friendly way at an authorised treatment facility. Proceeds from the sale are donated to the charity, with ‘bangers’ that are scrapped still netting an average of £100 for the chosen cause.

En-form who run a range of local environment projects including Farmers Markets, a Paint reuse scheme and 2 Reuse websites, helping residents throughout Essex is the latest of hundreds of charities who have recognised the potential of the car donation service.

Many car owners want an easy and completely free way to get rid of their old car. Giveacar will help them to do this in a legal and environmentally friendly way.

The scheme is intended to discourage irresponsible owners who may consider abandoning their cars – spoiling the appearance of the local environment and costing local taxpayers’ money to remove and dispose of them.

Alex Harvey, Manager of Giveacar, welcomed the partnership. He said ‘We are pleased en-form have joined with us to help solve the problem of unwanted cars in an environmentally friendly way, particularly as they are a local environment Charity themselves.’

To find out how old, unwanted and unused cars can benefit en-form, go to www.giveacar.co.uk/charities/en-form

HAPPY BIRTHDAY COMMUNITY REPAINT COLCHESTER

 

A local scheme which collects unwanted paint and re-distributes it to help brighten the lives of others celebrated its birthday last month. Staff and volunteers from Community RePaint Colchester painted the town red in recognition of eight years of supporting paint reuse in Colchester.

And the party is set to continue, because 2013 is also the 20^th anniversary of Community Repaint, the network of 67 projects across the UK that collect unwanted, surplus paint and re-distribute it to individuals, families and communities in need, improving the wellbeing of people and the appearance of places.

“The aim of celebrating our birthday and Community RePaint’s 20th anniversary is not only to mark these important milestones, but also to raise awareness in support of our activities,” said scheme manager Andrew Wilkinson. “RePaint Colchester is a simple, local solution to the problem of waste paint. By reusing paint in our community we can bring a splash of colour to the lives of those who need it the most, and help to protect the planet by preventing perfectly good paint from ending up in landfill. We have been so successful in collecting unwanted paint at the moment that we have plenty to give away to those on low incomes, charities, community groups and schools.”

Getting colour from every drop...

“Dulux has been committed to supporting Community RePaint for the last 20 years and recognises the fantastic work each scheme has done in brightening the lives of those in need” said Paul Murgett, Environmental Projects Co-ordinator at Dulux.

“Over the years the network has grown, meaning more people and communities across the UK can benefit from re-using unwanted or surplus paint which would otherwise go to waste. Dulux is proud to continue sponsoring this fantastic network and is grateful for all the work it does.”

If you are on a low income or benefits and need paint to re-decorate your home no matter how much or how little, or if your charity or community group could use a lick of paint, call Community RePaint Colchester to find out more on 01206 798113.

In 2012 householders, traders and paint manufacturers donated 387,495 litres of paint to Community RePaint schemes, which then distributed 218,364 litres to some 2,214 community groups and  17,296 individuals, providing 190 jobs and 1,274 volunteer and training opportunities.

ENDS

For more information, please contact:

Community RePaint Network

0113 200 3959

07725 760 082

repaint@resourcefutures.co.uk

www.communityrepaint.org.uk

Notes to Editors:

1. Community RePaint Colchester is run by en-form the Colchester Environment Centre which operates the Colchester RePaint Scheme, the Colchester and Wivenhoe Farmers Markets, the Giveortake,org and Reuseessex.org.uk websites.
2. What is Community RePaint? Community RePaint schemes collect unwanted, surplus paint and re-distribute it to individuals, families and communities in need, improving the wellbeing of people and the appearance of places across the UK. In doing so Community RePaint provides social, environmental and economic benefits

3  20 years of paint re-use: Community RePaint will celebrate its 20^th anniversary in July 2013. Activities to mark this milestone are planned for throughout the year.

3.Who runs Community RePaint? The Network has been sponsored by Dulux since its inception in 1993 and forms part of Dulux’s ongoing sustainability programme. Community RePaint is managed by Resource Futures, an employee-owned, non-profit distributing environmental consultancy based in Bristol.

4. How to contact Community RePaint: www.communityrepaint.org.uk includes a postcode search, which can be used to locate the nearest point for donating paint. Alternatively, phone: 0113 200 3059 or email: repaint@resourcefutures.co.uk