A sustainable business

One of the most recent beneficiaries of the Morley Glass Green Vision funding, has used the money to take over and improve one of the flower beds in a local park.

The Calverley Rainbows, Brownies and Guides joined forces to put their green fingers to the test at Calverley’s Victoria Park.

This began in 2022 as part of First Calverley Brownies centenary celebrations, with those who took part planting spring bulbs, summer perennials and winter bedding plants. A number of edible bushes and fruit trees have also been planted at the Brownies’ allotment.

Initially, the girls planted and grew all the plants in suffragette colours of green, white and purple - products including peas, beans and carrots. This year however, the funding has been used to invest in a green house where tomatoes, cucumbers and peppers have all been growing nicely.

In addition to this there is now a cage where the girls are growing cabbages and Brussel sprouts which they hope will be ready in time for Christmas. Furthermore, they also learned about sustainable foraging with some of the girls taking home some of the wild garlic growing along the footpaths.

All the girls – from First Calverley Rainbows, First and Second Calverley Brownies, and First and Second Calverley Guides – have taken part in the planting programme as part of the North East England chief commissioner’s #growshoutandshare challenge for 2023. This looks at GROWing up through guiding; SHOUTing about guiding, and learning to SHARE with communities. All attributes that complement the Morley Glass Green Vision ethos.

The girls will be doing further challenges this year including the Leeds Owl trail, donating 50 items to a local food-bank, and completing 50 random acts of kindness within the community.

The Morley Glass Green Vision was developed by Ian Short, Managing Director to support and encourage growth in the community. There is no greater example of this than the project created by the children and teachers at Moorlands Primary School in Huddersfield.

Head Teacher Amanda Denney discusses the benefits gained by the children and the school, which she attributes to the financial donation from Morley Glass.

Amanda comments, “We asked the children what they wanted to do to celebrate the Queen’s Jubilee. Their overwhelming response was to create something where they could always remember the celebration, but also something that could be used by them to enjoy.

Funding for schools is not great generally, so thanks to the monies from Morley Glass we now have a stunning Jubilee Garden. It simply would not have been possible without the support from the company. 

The garden has been designed by the children and can be used as a quiet space for them to enjoy all year round during the academic term time.

Designs were submitted to the teachers by the children, then planting began with the concept based around the colours of the Queen’s Jubilee. Pebbles and stones were also painted and strategically placed to add to the overall aesthetic. It is an ongoing tribute to Queen Elizabeth II that can be celebrated year in and year out, by many children during the time they attend the school. Hopefully generations of children will be able to enjoy it.

The Jubilee Garden is now used regularly as a comfort zone, while the school’s ‘Go Wild Club’ also benefits from the area as they learn about plant life and nature.

The donation from Morley Glass has demonstrated such a positive approach to life and shown them that their aspirations are achievable.

Freedom 2 Dance, based in Castleford, West Yorkshire, has grown into a diverse dance school since its inception in 2015. Now, it takes a significant step by joining the PRIDE party in Leeds, showcasing its achievements through a dedicated float. The collaboration, achieved after raising £5k with the principal support of Morley Glass' sponsorship, is underscored by the company's logo on event t-shirts. As students and staff parade during the annual LGBT+ festival on August 6th, this partnership embodies unity and inclusivity.

Co-founders Laura Jaggar and Michelle Dickinson emphasise dance's role in building self-belief and confidence. This ethos resonates with PRIDE's message, further emphasised by Morley Glass' Managing Director, Ian Short. The event symbolises the celebration of differences and equality. With 50 dancers and teachers participating, Freedom 2 Dance and Morley Glass jointly promote the transformative power of dance and unity, inviting all to partake.

The Tribe Youth Group was launched back in April 2018 to offer a safe space for children and young adults aged between 6 and 15 years of age.

The idea behind this was to provide young people with a place where they could socialise with people of a similar age to enjoy fun, gain personal support and when needed someone they can talk to about issues that are impacting their lives.

This ethos ties in with the principles of the Morley Glass Green Vision Grant project, which made it ideal to receive funding from the company for The Tribe Youth Group’s Community Garden Project.

The redevelopment of the garden, which is based in Cross Gates, Leeds, has helped to forge deep connections between the children and supporters who regularly attend.

Just a couple of hours a week, has given the youngsters a rewarding project that they can be part of and can maintain. All weeds and a huge amount of brambles were removed, and replaced with beautiful flowers. Despite an attack from vandals 3 years ago, Morley Glass funding has ensured that the garden is now back to full bloom.

Since renovating the green space, the garden has subsequently won a Wild Garden Award for the efforts made, the results achieved and the continuing participation of the children involved.

Ian Short, Managing Director, Morley Glass comments, “This simple and easy social solution with The Tribe Youth Group, falls into the category of charities and good causes that need and deserve support in the local area. Providing a safe zone for young people to enjoy is such a benefit to the community.”

Jean Barnbrook comments, “We aim to give those who attend some vital life skills including socialising, working together as a team whilst making a valuable contribution to the area. Also, we offer emotional support for the children who may not always have a safe space to talk about their personal issues and challenges.”

Any children wishing to join, please visit, The Tribe Youth Group children can attend for a very small fee of £3 per week. Contact Jean Barnbrook for more information. 

We are also proud supporters of Yorkshire Children’s Charity, who exist to make sure no child in Yorkshire is left behind due to ill health, disability or financial circumstance. One third of all children in Yorkshire are living in poverty, and our disabled children are significantly more likely to grow up in poverty than their non-disabled peers. As a business born and bred in Yorkshire, just like Yorkshire Children’s Charity, we don’t believe this is acceptable. Crucially, we played a big role in the charity’s first Great Yorkshire Build project, at Brooklands Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) school in Skipton.

Children with SEND in the UK are being systemically failed. Their schools are hugely oversubscribed and underfunded. As a result, their facilities and resources are overcrowded, outdated and entirely insufficient. The Great Yorkshire Build is a unique initiative bringing together the property and third sector in a one-of-a-kind partnership to re-fresh and re-energise these failing SEND facilities. We were incredibly proud to supply the bi-fold doors to the new classrooms at Brooklands, giving profoundly disabled and vulnerable children much greater freedom and independence to be outdoors and enjoy their new playground facilities.

The Yorkshire Cat Rescue based in Keighley, initially approached Morley Glass for a Green Vision Fund to help reduce heating costs for the beautiful felines in their care, during the cold and bitter wintry months.

The registered charity was created to help save the lives of abandoned and unwanted cats and kittens in and around the Yorkshire area.

Jo Beverley, from Yorkshire Cat Rescue, wanted to ensure that every cat or kitten could be kept warm without expensive heating costs subsequently limiting what could be provided for each and every animal in their care.

She comments, “Part of our mission is to ensure that we can properly look after every cat that comes into our safe keeping. With heating costs now so expensive we have decided to install graphene heating mats in every unit, which will help the cats to stay warm in their own personal space.

This prototype will hopefully also help the Yorkshire Cat Rescue reduce its heating bills so that monies can be diverted towards other areas of the charity.“

The Morley Glass Green Vision Funding has been used to purchase the graphene heating pads which use infrared heating and come with a 10 year guarantee.

As the cats in care require food, love, shelter and essential veterinary care such as neutering, being able to spread costs across the charity is crucial, until a permanent home can be found.

Demand for rehoming cats is currently increasing due to the severe cost of living crisis. Whilst many are cared for by fosterers across Yorkshire there are many cats needing the bare essentials at the main Yorkshire Cat Rescue in Keighley.

Jo Beverley continues, We want to ensure that all the cats in our care are provided a warm soothing place to sit or sleep on chilly days or nights. The graphene heating pads, purchased with the funds from Morley Glass have been ideal and will also be very beneficial for any of our cats or kittens who may be unwell or recuperating after surgery.”

Ian Short, Managing Director Morley Glass and Glazing comments, “I am familiar with rescue animals and believe that they deserve to be a priority when it comes to forever homes.

We are all hoping that the excellent thermal conduction of the graphene heating pads will provide a safer, more environmentally friendly option for Yorkshire Cat Rescue, so that money can be saved on heating bills, to be used elsewhere as the charity needs.”

The Huddersfield Litter Bandits are a small group of like minded individuals who are focused on keeping green spaces litter free. Pamela Spychalski, believes that individuals should be responsible for their rubbish and is committed to keeping her local area as clean and tidy as possible.

Whilst making the green areas and surrounds look better, the objective of the Huddersfield Litter Bandits is to educate and encourage others to be responsible for waste.

This environmental focus, brought Pamela and her team together with Morley Glass through the Green Vision programme, which helps to fund local projects and charities across Yorkshire. Launched by Ian Short who has been responsible for introducing a successful recycling scheme at his company, Green Vision intends to support those who need it most in the community.

The funding for the Huddersfield Litter Bandits has helped to purchase quality litter picker handles that are reliable and won’t break. Hoops have also been purchased to hold the bags open and hi-vis jackets bought and branded for the growing team of enthusiasts.

Pamela comments, “Litter picking has so many environmental benefits, because if rubbish can be recycled or disposed of correctly it prevents wildlife from getting hurt and also prevents plastics from breaking down and entering the food chain.

Initially the group started with two old school friends reuniting for the common cause, via Facebook, and this page has now grown to nearly 240 followers. Companies, scouting groups and politicians are all very supportive of the Litter Bandits cause.

Most recently the work done by Huddersfield Litter Bandits was mentioned in parliament by local MP Jason McCartney. Meanwhile a local ‘Squirrels’ scouting group attended an organised Litter Pick, where rubbish had been scattered for them to pick up to learn about different types of waste and how it can be recycled.

Ian Short, MD Morley Glass comments, “Protecting the environment is very close to my heart and this particular funding project enabled me to support a group of people with environmental issues at their core. The mindset needs to change regarding littering - moving forward, education as well as physically removing waste and rubbish, will be very necessary - the Huddersfield Litter Bandits are doing a great job protecting the local environment and we are proud to support them.”

With the cost of living crisis hitting so many families currently, the Cash For Kids charity has this year been making a focus to help disadvantaged children with the bare basics.

So many of the children and families who contact the West Yorkshire based charity need help to buy some of the fundamental products many of us take for granted. Items such as toiletries, school uniforms, clothing, shoes but notably this year, funding has been requested for food.

For Ian Short at Morley Glass, the Green Vision programme is there for just such funding programmes and the focus is to help disadvantaged families and children across the local area.

The Cash for Kids grant is helping to improve the lives of so many families but this year there has been an exceptionally high number of requests due to the current economic crisis. At the start of this year £50k, was donated as part of the Cash for Crisis campaign, with a further £25k recently given in June.

Cash for Kids is a grant-giving charity that relies on generous donations to provide access to therapists, specialists, therapy rooms and other necessary support that is otherwise unavailable to disadvantaged children.

Similarly, the Morley Glass mission is to help improve lives of those in poverty, neglect or who may need medical assistance or other special needs.

For organiser Lisa Sullivan, this year, the financial impact has meant so many more families are at risk and through 2023 alone the charity has helped 21,903 children to date.

She comments, “Every child should be able to achieve their full potential and enjoy life to the full. Working with companies such as Morley Glass and Ian in particular, makes such a difference. Thanks to the generosity of the company we have been able to help local families across West Yorkshire, The Dales, Harrogate and York.

Without people like Ian we would be unable to function as a charity - because of Morley Glass we can directly support children and their families who have absolutely nowhere else to turn.

We work with local grass-roots organisations across the region that aim to make a difference to young lives, and directly support families who often have nowhere else to go through our regular grant rounds.”

At least 80p from every £1 received goes back into the local communities.

Connecting with local community causes is at the very heart of Morley Glass Green Vision funding. For Ian Short, Managing Director it is all about helping the community and providing opportunity for growth at any age.

By giving to local charities and communities it enriches lives and and helps people to come together through ideas and positive impact.

The Gildersome Cricket Club, is just such a community cause, so when Ian was contacted by Paul Pearson from the club, they chatted about the physical benefits and mental well being that healthy competition brings to young and old alike.

Consequently, earlier this year, Morley Glass donated funds to the club as a sponsor in a bid to give young cricketers the chance to learn new sporting skills.

Ian comments, “Giving back to the community ensures that it becomes a better place for the next generation. Physical health is just a part of this donation, as the club supports players who want to learn, whilst also giving them a great place to socialise.

Being able to immerse yourself in a community and the local people you can learn so much about how the world works. It gives the young players a unique sense of purpose which can be transferred into other areas of their life moving forward.”

Gildersome Sports Club is the home of Gildersome & Farnley Hill CC, which was formed in 2018 and with games in the Bradford Premier League both cricket and football teams play at Street Lane, Gildersome.

The club has seen an excellent resurgence in popularity over the last few years, both on and off the field, being part of a thriving village sports club that is open all year round. 

Paul Pearson, Club Secretary commented, “It is essential we continue to develop our junior cricket teams over the coming years and thanks to the support of companies such as Morley Glass, we are attracting new members who enjoy the team spirit and benefits that club life has to offer. Players and/or coaches are always welcome to join.”
 
Ian concludes, “Giving back to the place you call home helps to bring the community together and bridge some of the social, economic and political gaps.”

For more information on the Morley Glass Green Vision Funding contact Charlotte on 0113 277 8722