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We are looking to work with partners across the borough to deliver a range of activities that help people and groups build personal and community resilience in response to economic, health and wellbeing pressures.  These Community Resilience Activities will be initially part of the One Wellingborough project, potentially funded by the Borough Council of Wellingborough (subject to approval) and led by the Victoria Centre and Wellingborough Eco Group. Activities will include:

1. Set up a Timebank to support people and help make volunteering sustainable for people and organisations.
2. Establish Community Swap / Sharing Clubs, sharing tools and resources more around people and organisations – helping people and reducing waste.
3. Set up a Community Food Growing project – showing how to grow our own food.
4. Clear up our communities and convert ‘grot spots’ to ‘Love Lots’, growing food, flowers and inspiring people, led by Wellingborough Eco Group and Castle Fields Streetwatch.
5. Getting to Know You – helping people to get to know each other through our ‘talking library’ and helping many people coping with grief know there are people on hand to ‘Listen and Help’

These ideas are all project proposals from members of Wellingborough Eco Group. The listed activities have been included in a grant application by One Wellingborough (Glamis Hall/Victoria Centre) to the Borough Council of Wellingborough. This is of course subject to support from members of the group and other partners from the borough. Wellingborough Eco Group will continue to work on other projects with other partners, including existing and new projects with Glamis Hall. If you want to support any of these activities, please comment here or on our Facebook Group.

The Lockdown period has seen a considerable increase in people cycling. For health, well being and environmental reasons we wish to enable this to continue and to support many more people to buy or dig out their bikes and get back in the ‘saddle’.

Following on the Government’s new Active Travel Initiative, we, the One Wellingborough project led by Victoria Centre, Wellingborough Eco Group and supported by NENESCAPE, believe the Borough Council of Wellingborough could leave a cycling infrastructure legacy as we move to the new Unitary Council. With this in mind we will…

(i) Provide Bike Shelters – Working with partners to provide a number of secure bike shelters around the area – mainly in CCTV secure places, (up to 8) including at Victoria Centre, Glamis Hall, outside the Police Station or by the Museum / Castle Theatre, at WACA and Hemingwell Skills Centre, enabling people to have a safe place to lock their bikes once they arrive at their destination.

(ii) Carry out an audit of our cycle paths and cycling facilities across the borough, in town and rural areas – identifying blockages, gaps and contribute the updating the Wellingborough Cycle Map.

(iii) Run 3 Cycling ‘Come, Try and Repair’ Days – where children and adults can dust off their cycling skills and learn how to safely cycle – they will also learn basic bike maintenance and access repairs via our Bike Repair Cafe.

If you are supporting us with this initiative, please comment here or on our Facebook Group.

Corona Virus update – We are going online during the viral pandemic. Join us online on Tuesday April 28th from 7:30pm at https://zoom.us/j/97284656368

Many of us are working to tidy up our neighbourhoods or for a fossil-free future for all our children. But it’s hard, often dispiriting work; renewing & making new friendships, in a relaxed setting is a great way to chill. That’s where Green Drinks comes in!

Join us on Tuesday 28th April for our second event, no agenda, just like minded people, who care about the environment, meeting for a ‘Green Drink’ and a chat.

Do join us for networking, news, chat and new friends; and be part of a growing global network where local people push for and build a sustainable future. Everyone is invited!

Join our online meeting on Tuesday 28th April from 7:30pm at https://zoom.us/j/97284656368

http://greendrinks.org/Northamptonshire/Wellingborough

Is anyone up for a challenge? During the viral pandemic, a lot of activities that Wellingborough Eco Group do in our local area are not possible, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t still love where we live. We know lots of you are busy making your world a better place already…

Whether it’s cleaning up outside our own front door – imagine if everyone just did that one thing – making sure you don’t waste any food and getting creative with left-overs or decluttering your home and putting aside anything you no longer want to give to a charity shop.  

How to get involved:

1. Pick a theme – some ideas include: your favourite recipe to reduce food waste; mending, repairing & upcycling things around the home; keeping in touch with people in need; home-schooling ideas; discovering nature in your garden & gardening; nifty ideas & eco-friendly crafts; setting up a virtual book club …and many more – be creative!
2. Create some content – a short video, photo or illustration that shows how you’re making the most of your time at home and making where you live more eco-friendly.
3. Post your content on Wellingborough Eco Group – tag a friend to get involved too, add the hashtag #lovewhereyoulive and don’t forget to share your post from our group widely.
4. Once you’re done, try something else – you can get involved as many times as you like!

Yes, this has been shamelessly stolen from Keep Britain Tidy’s ‘Love Where You Live’ campaign; done worry, we are joining in with them and we will share your favourites with them too.

We can all do some simple things that are good for us and good for the planet.

Stay home, stay safe and start creating. Challenge accepted! 

Wellingborough Eco Group are hosting Green Drinks evenings, and these events are open to everyone in Northamptonshire.  We are simply running new friendly group meetings every month and we are going online during the viral pandemic.  The aim is to create a space where people who care about the environment can chat.

Do join us for networking, news, chat and new friends; and be part of a growing global network where local people push for and build a sustainable future. Everyone is invited, there is no agenda, this is all about you and what we can do environmentally locally in a friendly and positive way.  Do join us!

Corona Virus update – We are going online during the viral pandemic.

Join like minded local people for VIRTUAL GREEN DRINKS on the last Tuesday of the month for networking, news, or just to chat and make new friends. Join our online meeting on Tuesday March 31st from 7:30pm at https://zoom.us/j/736617891

‘VIRTUAL’ GREEN DRINKS with Wellingborough Eco Group
http://www.greendrinks.org/Northamptonshire/Wellingborough

Wellingborough Eco Group has a successful Facebook group, that is helping to improve our borough’s environment by enabling local people to reduce, reuse and recycle items that would otherwise end up in landfill, and helping local people reduce their carbon footprints.

Now we have decided to reach out further with our new Nextdoor group. This group will be exactly the same as the Facebook group, we have set it up to connect with more of our community and to make more of a difference!

This group is open to everyone and aims to work with local councillors, businesses and community organisations. Please share your ideas, events and groups, and refrain from criticism or negative posts. This is all about you and what we can do environmentally locally in a friendly and positive way 🙂

Join us on Nextdoor at https://nextdoor.co.uk/g/b3mr12uzd/

THIS EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED DUE TO THE CORONA PANDEMIC

This month our two hour tidy up will be litter picking Croyland Gardens on Saturday 28th March. It takes place between 10am-12 midday. Our recycling station will be set up from 9:30 in Morrison’s Public Car Park.

Croyland Gardens is just off of Morrison’s Car Park, drivers can use this parking for three hours or can park in neighboring streets. For walkers and cyclists, the gardens are close to the town centre (approximately 5 minutes walk)

Due to Coronavirus (Covid-19) we have the following restrictions for litter pickers:

• DON’T COME IF YOU HAVE A COUGH, ARE SHORT OF BREATH OR HAVE A FEVER.
• DO OBSERVE RULES OF SELF-SERVICE AND OF TWO METRES SOCIAL DISTANCING AT ALL TIMES.

Always stay safe – We will expect that all litter pickers should maintain at least the distance of an outstretched arm and a litter picker from each other (two metres) that all equipment, including litter pickers, gloves (bring your own if you can) hi-vis vests and bags, are self selected and returned to the recycling station; and that all bags of collected litter are taken to a collection point by those that picked it.

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Wellingborough Norse have again kindly let us borrow their litter picking equipment, and will be collecting what we have litter picked at the end of our two hours. Please again remember the rules of self service and two metres social distancing when they are collecting the bags.

For updates see – https://www.facebook.com/events/136998207651885/

For government advice on Coronavirus see – https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/

Wellingborough Eco Group and Glamis Hall hosted our fourth Repair Cafe yesterday, during the Indoor Car Boot Sale, and despite concerns over the viral pandemic, we had a steady flow of people bringing items in to be repaired.

Our fab five fixers repaired 10 items, including a chainsaw, a CD player, two tablets, an earring, a basket a food mixer, a lawn mower and a record player.

Thank you to our repairers Simon, Dave, Andy, Chris and Jonathan for saving local people money and saving salvageable items from going to landfill. Thank you to Heather, Gary and the whole team at Glamis Hall for hosting our Repair Cafe.

Here is a small selection of the photos that we took:

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There will be no Repair Cafe or Indoor Car Boot Sale in April due to Easter. Our next Repair Cafe will be on Saturday 9th May, where we will have more fixers, including Jane with her sewing machine, there to save you money and items from ending up in landfill!

Wellingborough Eco Group and Glamis Hall are hosting their fourth Repair Cafe on Saturday 14th March from 9am till 12, during the Indoor Car Boot Sale.

Repair Cafes are community events that match people who need stuff fixed with people who like fixing things. Repair Cafes are completely non-commercial. There are no promises and no guarantees, but if something can be saved the repairers will give it their best efforts. Repairers are always keen to teach you how to do the repair – or at least have you watch while they do it.

There is no charge for entry or repair but donations are gratefully received and help pay for costs. You can basically bring anything you can carry that will not make a mess in the venue. Here are some suggestions:

A bicycle, clothing in need of repair, small electrical or electronic appliances, lamps, toys, mobile phones, laptops, printers, items that need gluing, a clean/repair etc.

Whatever it is, it might not even be broken – just dirty, and you don’t know how to clean it without damaging it – or you can’t work out how to use it without the manual – bring it along. You can even bring several things – though to be fair, you will have to join the queue several times!

There will also be demonstrations on how to reuse stuff that would otherwise end up in landfill.

We are also seeking more repairers, so if you want to share your skills (whatever they are) to save stuff being thrown away, join us. We would love you to get involved! Message us via messenger if you are interested.