This was a project working in partnership with Furniture Matters, a recycling charity based in Morecambe.
Furniture Matters was aiming to improve the quality of the furniture it sent out to its customers. What they didn’t have was a workshop to carry out the work!
We saw this as a great opportunity to work with local people with learning difficulties in first creating a new workshop in an underused space and then carrying out renovation work on items of furniture.
Starting with an empty room, over a year we worked together to set up the workshop and carry out furniture renovation work. Project members worked alongside other volunteers and staff at Furniture Matters in carrying out the work. They also undertook training in furniture renovation.
By the end of the year we had a fully functioning workshop turning out good quality furniture. Those involved gained a wide range of furniture renovation and work skills.
We also had a lot of fun – including producing a scarecrow out of pieces of furniture for Wray Scarecrow Festival!