Angus Cycle Hub has landed another five-figure grant windfall which will see it build on a recycling project which saved five tonnes of bikes from the skip last year.
In the latest boost for the thriving social enterprise, Angus Environmental Trust has awarded the group £65,000, with the cash secured through the Scottish Landfill Communities Fund which the organisation administers in Angus.
The funding has helped secure two full-time local jobs for the next year, acquisition of an electric van for the project and tooling costs to help increase the number of bikes it can recycle in the drive to help further reduce carbon emissions in Angus.
Angus Cycle Hub also recently received some £20,000 to help roll out a Bikeability training programme across the area and project director Scott Francis said the Trust backing was another massive step forward.
“We are absolutely thrilled to have been awarded this investment from Angus Environmental Trust,” he said.
“The Angus region dumps between 300 and 1,000 bikes per quarter at recycling centres.
“Until recently these went to landfill or were scrapped, and were being recycled outside of the region and not benefiting local people or economy.
“At the moment we are only recycling around 45% of the stuff that comes in and the funding from Angus Environmental Trust helps us raise that capacity.
“In 2016 the project helped recycle 5300kg worth of bikes back into the Angus community and its cycling and recycling initiatives helped save over 17,000kg of Co2e while encouraging local people to try cycling as a mean to better health and wellbeing.”
AET director Dr Marshall Halliday said the cycle hub was the perfect fit for the trust’s objectives.
“This is an ideal project and it capitalises in the big increase in cycling across the UK,” he said.
“This scheme is providing a great service to the community, it’s encouraging more and more people to get into cycling and is preventing unused bikes going to landfill so it really is a win-win for everyone.”
Angus Cycle Hub has also recently been awarded a prestigious silver Cycle Friendly Communities award from Cycling Scotland, a first for the area.
