Author: ecoadmin

Group of the month: Wellie Wombles 

November’s Wombles Community Charity Group of the Month is The Wellie Wombles!

Their ‘Womble on the Ground’ Jason visited Craig and The Wellie Wombles at our Two Hour Tidy Up of Queensway Park. If you want to see what they got up to, simply click the video below:

If reading’s more your style… here’s what Jason found out about the Group of the Month!

How long has your group been formed? And how many regular volunteers do you have taking part?

• The Wellie Wombles was established by Freddie & Georgina Harris in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, as part of the Wellingborough Eco Group supported by Jonathan Hornett.
• Since setting the group up in Feb 2021, the group now has a following of 1.6k on Facebook, where we share all the amazing news about our Womble journey in the community.
• Freddie has also helped set up several other groups including the Rushden & Higham Ferrers Litter Wombles in January 2024, alongside Craig Blacha who now co-ordinates the group efforts.

What is the biggest problem your group faces?

On of the biggest problems our group faces is the recycling of Nitrous Oxide cylinders and logistically recycling other materials can be hard due to storage.

What is your proudest achievement as a group?

The proudest achievement would be the dedication of our volunteers who rain or shine will be out picking in our communities. Their work makes our communities places we are proud to call home and we should all be proud of that achievement.

What is the strangest thing your group has found during a clean up?

One of our volunteers found a bag of hair wigs. Another found over 200 dumped bottles of urine in the forest!

If you could give only 1 piece of advice to anyone thinking of becoming a Womble or setting up their own group what would it be?

It’s so satisfying and rewarding. There are so many great people you meet along the way and so many new places to discover on your doorstep that you probably didn’t know about. Try something new!

Wellie Wombles are now an official Wombles Community Group!

During The Wombles Community Charity ‘Womble on the Ground’ visit at our Two Hour Tidy Up, Jason presented us with a certificate to officially recognise the Wellie Wombles as one of their Community Groups.

Here is Craig with Orinoco and Jonathan with Waendel after being presented with our certificate! Well done Wellie Wombles and thank you The Wombles Community Charity!

Come and swap or grab a bargain this Tuesday at ECO HUB Swanspool Pavilion, in our Black Tuesday Electrical Sale. We will have hundreds of electrical items in the hall, all for swaps or a small donation. So, if you fancy a next to new hifi, a great printer, or even a good iron, we’ll sort you out.

The point is that there’s a better way than Black Friday, by saving electrical items and reusing them, you will save lots of money whilst also helping the environment. Electrical waste is the fastest-growing type of waste, and it’s important to reuse electrical items, or recycle them, to conserve resources and reduce climate change.

Black Friday itself creates significant waste through excessive consumption, packaging, returns, and emissions from manufacturing and delivery. A large portion of Black Friday purchases ends up in landfills, especially impulse buys that are quickly discarded or damaged. Choose change, choose eco-friendly or second-hand items, and avoid unnecessary purchases.

SWAP DON’T SHOP!

Wellingborough Swap Shop is a local exchange where you can get something you want by swapping things you no longer need or by making a small donation to the group. You could describe it as a kind of bring-and-buy sale with the option to swap. Participants do not need to bring anything in order to take away goods, a pay as you feel donation to the group works too.

Make the most eco-friendly shopping trip in town, at Wellingborough’s cheapest charity shop, we have clothes, books, toys and this Tuesday we’re electric! All items are PAT Tested and you can try before you buy. Come to the BLACK TUESDAY Electrical Sale this Tuesday 10-6 at ECO HUB Swanspool Pavilion!

Wellingborough Eco Group Nature Rangers

After a successful planting season last winter, we were planning on planting lots more trees tomorrow in Kilborn Park, but due to Storm Claudia we have had to cancel this and postpone until December.

Due to the amount of rain, and that it is unlikely to stop before we are planting tomorrow, we and North Northamptonshire Council think that it would be prudent to cancel our Tree Planting tomorrow.

Weather warnings issued.

We have an amber weather warning until midnight tonight then the yellow warning continues until tomorrow morning. There will be more than a month’s rain, which poses a significant safety risk.

If the rain continues it will be slippery and muddy, and the forecast is not good. It’s a tough one to call but ultimately want to make sure everyone is safe. So unfortunately it’s best to postpone.Join us to plant trees next month.North Northamptonshire Council have all the trees sorted and everything ready to go, but the next Saturday available for us is 20th December, so we have set that as the date.

We will be planting whips again with North Northamptonshire Council, who will bring along about 300 trees. We will be planting trees to replace those we have planted, that have not survived the dry weather.

Good news is, some of the trees that looked dead have sprung back to life and are doing well! But there’s still plenty of gaps to be filled in with new trees.

Come and plant a tree!

Sorry about tomorrow, do join us on Saturday 20th December 10-1 in Kilborn Park. More details and maps at – https://wellingboroughecogroup.org.uk/eco/tree-planting/

Wellingborough Eco Group

Winter Warmers are back, this time with chair yoga!

This weeks Winter Warmer will take place at ECO HUB on Sunday 16th November 12-3pm. We will be serving free hot food throughout the session, plus there’s a chair yoga session for you to join in with from 1pm, or just come for free tea and coffee, everyone is welcome!

The Chair Yoga will be led by Dr Sonal Shar, a qualified Homeopath, who also works as holistic therapist and will bring details of workshops she runs for mental health, arthritis and joint pains, skin conditions and many more ailments where homeopathy (alternative medicine) helps and provides a complete cure.

The fun is not reserved for Sundays, you can come to our Happy Cafe Winter Warm Space on Tuesdays 10am-6pm and Thursdays 10am-2pm, and to Replay Fun Fridays 6-8pm too. Plus hot food from Food Sharers is served up 12-2pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and it’s all free! Attached are some pictures from today!

Winter Warm Spaces and Winter Warmers are part of North Northamptonshire Council‘s Warm, Safe Space scheme. They are there for anyone and offer warmth, hot drinks and social activities for free. Our Winter Warm Space is also an Action for Happiness Happy Cafe to offer helpful advice where we can.

Come and enjoy good company, free tea and coffee, fun activities and great food. See you at our Chair Yoga Winter Warmer this Sunday!

Wellingborough Eco Group & Wellie Wombles

Get your fancy dress ready, this Month’s Two Hour Tidy Up is a Halloween special!

It takes place at Twilight on the last day before the clocks go backwards! Join us on Saturday (25th October) at London Road Cemetery and along The Walks! We will be setting up our Recycling Station at the entrance to cemetery on Castle Road and The Walks (map below) from 3:30, for a spooky litter pick between 4:00 and 6:00.

Join us for our monthly Two Hour Tidy Up!

This location has been chosen because we have had reports that the cemetery and The Walks are heavily littered. We tidied this area for Halloween last October, but unfortunately due to some messy people there’s a lot to do. It could be cold, so free refreshments including tea and coffee will be available.

Madame Cholet herself, Georgina, will be making the soup for all Wombles at ECO HUB Swanspool Pavilion, just over the road, which will be open from 5:30 until 7:00, for some free homemade soup, and for tea and coffee too. Come and have a treat after our Halloween Tidy Up.

To help us and keep us safe at this and future litter picks, Wellingborough Eco Group have purchased some litter pickers, hi-vis vests and safety equipment including road signs, so everything is provided but please bring your own gloves and do dress up if you can. Join in, bring your friends and family, ALL WELCOME!

Get ready for a spooktacular afternoon of fun and laughter at our Eco Club for Kids Children’s Halloween Party!

👻 Come along in your favourite costume and enjoy games where you can win a trick or a treat, plus crafts and activities — all completely free!

🎃 Plus there will be children’s lunch bags for just £3, and adult refreshments available to purchase.

📅 Friday 31st October
🕛 12 noon – 3pm
📍 Swanspool Pavilion, Swanspool Parade, NN8 2BZ

Join in the fun, bring your friends, bring your imagination, and let’s make this Halloween one to remember!

And when it gets dark, the fun continues…

Halloween Display and Games

As it gets dark, our friends, Terri and her family, are opening up their garden for a fright night of spooky fun!

They and their ghouls and witches, will be raising funds for ECO HUB, so we can continue to offer our services, and bring you our Warm, Safe Space starting in November…

📅 Friday 31st October
🕛 3pm – 9pm
📍 143 Kiln Way, Queensway, NN8 3TL

Give a donation to see the display if you dare, and have a go on their tombola and guess how many sweets are in the jar for a bit of fun!

Walk of the Witches

Wellingborough Town Council invite you to gather your bravest friends, to step into the shadows to experience the spine-chilling Walk of the Witches in the hauntingly beautiful Swanspool Gardens.

📅 Date: Friday 31st October
🕛 6pm – 9pm
📍 Swanspool Pavilion and Gardens, Swanspool Parade, NN8 2BZ
Tickets: Available now from Wellingborough Town Council, book here.

Expect eerie encounters, mysterious stories, and a Halloween night you won’t forget! Join in if you dare.

We are hosting an Open Day in Swanspool Pavilion to show you all of the projects that we run, these include some games and displays from:

• Community Allotment
• Nature Rangers
• Eco-Crafters
• Wellingborough Swap Shop
• Wellingborough Repair Café
• Food Sharers
• Happy Cafe
• Wellie Wombles
• School Uniform Bank (SUB)

We are also hosting a Craft Fair at the same time, with stalls from local artists, plus there will be teas, coffees and cakes, and ECO HUB will be open for Swap Shop and Food Sharers too!

Book your stall today!

If you would like a stall, or even a stand to show what your community organisation does, please email info@wellingboroughecogroup.org.uk or call/message 07311 705705. Craft stalls £7, community stalls free!

See you on Saturday 4th October 10-2 at Swanspool Pavilion and ECO HUB for a lively Open Day and a lovely Craft Fair, see you there!