Green-Works is an award winning social enterprise and registered charity dedicated to helping the environment by diverting redundant office and school furniture from landfill by providing reused and remanufactured furniture to small business, charities, schools and community groups whilst providing training and real work experience to the unemployed.

What are your furniture needs?

Training and Employment

Your furniture enables Green-Works to create real jobs and to train people who are far too often denied these opportunities. Staff and volunteers are our most valuable resource and we give them the tools to realise their potential. Together with partners, we provide a step up into the job market for long term unemployed, homeless and disadvantaged people. Through our national network, nearly 200 people have found employment with us. Green-Works and its partners are proud of the positive social impact and provides £500,000 of social benefit each year.

We offer programmes in a range of areas including; Health & Safety and Manual Handling; Carpentry and First Aid; Forklift Driving and PAT Testing for electrical items; stock management and sales and customer relations. We are also very active in providing more options for volunteers in CNC operation, human resources and finance where they can gain skills relevant to specific job roles specifically due to the economic climate.

Throughout all the franchises the Green-Works scheme has been a real success due to the tasks involved whether it's sales, business or warehouse operations. The Forklift Driving, a particular strength and success with many young men, encourages them to read, write and study so they can pass the required test. It's not only qualifications the volunteers develop; a big part is about confidence, people skills and personal development...and of course it's all great for their CV.

 

Training across the Partners

Green-Works, Wembley

Green-Works main warehouse office provides training and employment opportunities for a variety of people from disadvantaged and marginalised backgrounds including a number of volunteers from Downview prison. Green-Works regularly has volunteers taking up positions in Finance, Joinery, Warehouse, Customer Services, Reception and Human Resources. So far this financial year Green-Works have had a high success rate in volunteers leaving us for paid employment.

 

First Fruit Warehousing, Silvertown, East London

The focus is to develop training opportunities, employment experience, life-skills support and back-to-work initiatives for people with a history of unemployment and / or homelessness, with the aim of equipping people to move on into full time permanent employment elsewhere. During their time with us, guys will gain a forklift truck license and training in warehousing, recycling, health and safety and possibly first aid and fire awareness.

 

Ct Office, Wolverhampton

Ct Office aims to improve the quality of life for the community by bringing together a range of partners from the charity, voluntary, public and private sectors. Ct Office have developed training opportunities, employment experience, life-skills support and back-to-work initiatives for people with a history of unemployment and / or homelessness, with the aim of equipping people to move on into full time permanent employment elsewhere.

 

KibbleWorks, Paisley, Scotland

Kibbleworks provides a spectrum of training and employment opportunities for young people who have been in care or are preparing to leave care. Staff at KibbleWorks need a unique blend of personal characteristics combining existing experience and expertise with the ability to sell a service and build a business. Using a traditional pre-apprenticeship model to support a young person who has a range of social, emotional, behavioral and educational difficulties, they must demonstrate leadership skills whilst acting as a role model and providing structured boundaries.

 

Sofa Office, Bristol

SOFA Project has been an active participant in a number of employment initiatives for long-term unemployed young people over the years, including a major role in the Future Jobs Fund programme in both Bristol and North Somerset.  SOFA Project has provided  employment for 27 young people in the first 12 months of the programme.

Over the past 5 years SOFA has worked in partnership with HMP Leyhill to provide workplace rehabilitation opportunities for offenders nearing the end of their sentences.  Today we provide 12 such places every day, and the partnership with Green-Works will create another 3 placements.  The programme has been such a success that so far three former participants in the programme have found full-time employment with SOFA following their release, and many others have been referred to similar organisations across England and Wales.

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