Keen gardeners in Sutton Coldfield will be able to beat the queues at the tip while raising funds for St Giles Hospice thanks to a new recycling fundraiser launching this week (1 JUNE 2020).

Many people have been getting out in the garden during lockdown, and huge queues have built up at household waste centres as people flock to dispose of months’ worth of grass cuttings and plant waste.

But green-fingered St Giles supporters can pick a more convenient solution by booking a collection of their green waste in return for a donation. Slots are limited and will be allocated on a first come first serve basis. People can register by visiting www.stgileshospice.com/greencycle.

The collection, running between Monday, 8th and Friday, 19th June in Lichfield, Sutton Coldfield, Tamworth, Burntwood, Aldridge and Brownhills, follows the huge success of the St Giles Hospice annual Treecycle fundraiser, which this year saw volunteers collecting more than 3,200 Christmas trees from local homes and businesses in January, raising more than £35,000 for its vital work.

Elinor (CORR) Eustace, Director of Fundraising at St Giles Hospice, said: “We hope that our first-ever GreenCycle will be really popular with Sutton Coldfield residents as gardens burst into life in the warmer weather.

“Many people can’t easily get to the local tip at the moment – particularly if they are socially isolating, shielding for health reasons or working long hours – and many more can’t face queuing to get into recycling centres that have only just re-opened.

“So GreenCycle will be the perfect opportunity for us to help our supporters while raising much-needed funds for St Giles at a time when there is an unprecedented demand for our care services.

“During the coronavirus lockdown our shops have had to close, our events have been cancelled and our income has almost dried up, meaning that we are now reliant on donations to continue our work.

“If your donations stop, we stop - so by registering for GreenCycle and spreading the word among friends and family you can help us at a time when we need you most, keeping our hospice open and our key workers working.”

GreenCycle has been launched as part of ‘Katie’s Appeal’, the charity’s urgent response to the coronavirus crisis. As only around a third of its funding comes from Government, the hospice relies upon donations and fundraising to raise the £850,000 it needs each month to fund its care services.

People can register for a GreenCycle collection at www.stgileshospice.com/greencycle until 12 midday on Friday, 5th June.

All green waste must be contained in sealed 80L garden waste bags. Bags must contain only biodegradable garden waste, which includes grass, weeds, hedge clippings, leaves, plants, bush prunings and tree prunings (no more than 5cm or 2in in diameter). St Giles will not be collecting any bags containing soil and or other non-green waste.

Bags must be left in a clearly visible, accessible and unobstructed location outside a designated property by Sunday, 7th June, for collection between 8am on Monday, 8th June and 6pm on Friday, 19th June. Volunteers are unable to enter private properties and will be following Government social distancing guidelines.

There must be a minimum of two bags per collection and there is a suggested donation of £8 for two bags, £12 for three bags, £15 for four bags and £20 for five-six bags. Please contact the St Giles fundraising team on 01543 432538 if you need more than six bags collecting.

The GreenCycle scheme will be supported by the mail service DHL and waste will be recycled by Lichfield-based Greener Composting, where it will be used for agriculture purposes. Plastic bags will be recycled by St Giles Hospice.

People can also support St Giles Hospice by donating to Katie’s Appeal, by making a one-off or regular monthly donation online at www.stgileshospice.com/katiesappeal or by calling 01543 432538, or by sending a cheque made payable to ‘St Giles Hospice’ to Katie’s Appeal, St Giles Hospice, Fisherwick Road, Whittington, Lichfield WS14 9LH.