A prominent electrical recycling company in Grantham and a national producer compliance scheme (PCS) teamed up to mark the 15 year anniversary of the UK’s Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Regulations with a donation of £2,000 to a charity selected by employees.

Environcom, from Spittlegate Level, Grantham and REPIC, based in Bury, Greater Manchester, made the timely contribution to the Grantham Foodbank as part of REPIC’s WEEE Cycle Network event.

The heartwarming endeavour was part of a nationwide event organised to mark the 15^th anniversary of electrical recycling in the UK. Organised by REPIC, the leading WEEE compliance scheme, the event rallied its partners, including treatment facilities, reuse organisations and local authorities for a 15-day, cycling extravaganza, marking the WEEE sector’s achievements and highlighting the importance of electrical recycling in the UK. Environcom employees joined REPIC on day 12 and 13 of the journey, completing a challenging 200 kms from Doncaster to Peterborough.

As a fitting legacy, REPIC pledged to work with its supporters to donate £15,000 to local charities associated with the event route. Recognising the importance of giving back and empowering employees to make a difference, Environcom initiated an internal campaign to choose a charity that resonated with its workforce. After careful consideration the employees collectively selected Grantham Foodbank as the recipient of the £2,000 donation.

Both Environcom and REPIC firmly believe in supporting causes that have a meaningful impact on the communities they serve.

Louise Grantham, Chief Executive from REPIC, commented, “The commitment and enthusiasm of all our riders to complete the 15-day WEEE Cycle Network made this event an experience to remember. Rounding off our WEEE Cycle Network event, which provided the opportunity to look back on what we’ve achieved as a sector and look forward together, marking this with a series of donations to worthy causes is a great legacy to a remarkable initiative.”

Cris Stephenson, Chief Executive from Environcom, added: “We are grateful for the opportunity to make a positive difference in our local community. Sadly, the number of individuals utilising foodbanks has increased, and our team feel passionate about helping these services that provide crucial support in our local community. We support many UK charities by supplying them with our Reuse electrical goods we refurbish from e-waste we collect so distributing unwanted or surplus food to people who are most in need is a cause we’re proud to support.”

Grantham Foodbank, based at Unit 1-2 Grey Friars, offers a real lifeline to the local community by providing those most in need with an emergency supply of three days’ nutritionally balanced food, a warm welcome and an opportunity to chat.

Part of The Trussell Trust, which supports communities and churches to open foodbanks across the UK, the Grantham Foodbank is part of a network of 428 foodbanks, working to tackle food poverty and hunger in our local communities.

Dorothy Gaughan, Grantham Foodbank coordinator, adds: “The Grantham Foodbank was established in 2011 accepting food donated locally and put it to good use. Our volunteers would never have imagined the level of need increasing to what it is today.

“It’s been an extremely busy summer for our service, during the month of August we provided 4,779 meals an increase of 50% from 2022. We are in desperate need of more donations to continue to support the vulnerable in our community through Autumn and Winter.

“We rely on our supporters for financial donations to help with operational costs but mainly for restocking any essential items we have a shortage of, so we’re very grateful for Environcom and REPIC for choosing to support us with this wonderful surprise donation.”