Kirklees celebrates its Recycling Heroes

We once again celebrated the sustainable superstars of the borough with the Recycling Hero Awards, which took place yesterday evening, 20 November.

The Mayor of Kirklees, Councillor Nosheen Dad, announced the winners, runners-up, and those highly commended, at the third Kirklees Recycling Heroes Awards. Councillor Ahmed, Cabinet Member for Environment and Highways gave certificates and congratulations to all those shortlisted before the mayor awarded trophies to the winners during a ceremony held at Dewsbury Town Hall.

What makes a Recycling Hero?

We received numerous nominations for each of the four awards, many of which were made secretly by members of the public. Winners had to demonstrate that they go well beyond what would be expected of them as individuals, businesses, or schools when it comes to recycling. Critically, the judges were looking for nominees who were inspiring others to follow their lead in taking steps to tackle climate change and reduce waste.

Following the announcement of the four main awards, the winner of the eagerly anticipated People's Choice Award was also announced. Introduced in 2024, it attracted over 1,100 votes for the 12 inspirational residents and businesses who were shortlisted.

Reward results

The results of the five awards are:

Winner of the Business Recycling Hero Award, Sponsored by The Grapevine Magazine: 3M Buckley Innovation Centre (3M BIC) - Huddersfield

The 3M BIC go above and beyond their core business operations finding innovative ways to reduce waste such as using an improved procurement process to cut out single-use plastics, converting food waste into bioenergy, donating unused furniture to charities where possible, utilising a rainwater harvesting system, and more.

BioBax Ltd was named runner-up, with Grow Refill highly commended.

Winner of the Recycling Hero Award, Sponsored by SUEZ: Sylvia Pearson

Sylvia uses her creativity to engage and educate children and the community to reduce waste through school lessons, after-school clubs, and evening sessions. She uses recyclable items to create beautiful works of art and shows children (and adults too) that being creative does not have to be expensive.

Sue Bowyer was named runner-up, with Karen Hill highly commended.

Winner of the School Recycling Hero Award, Sponsored by Leafield Environmental: Nields Academy

Nields Academy has recycled over a tonne of hard-to-recycle items including over 21,000 pens. They are also invested in their garden, where they use food scraps to feed their tiger worms, creating compost. The children are enthusiastic about recycling and understand its importance through these activities.

Wilberlee Junior & Infant School was named runner-up, with Scapegoat Hill Junior & Infant School highly commended.

Winner of the Young Recycling Hero Award, Sponsored by Revive Kirklees: Sienna McLeod (age 13)

Sienna has demonstrated an ongoing dedication to reducing, reusing, and recycling waste. She has learned new skills to upcycle and repurpose old worn-out textiles, cardboard, plastics and more, giving them a practical use.

Henry Alexander-Pitts (age 5) was named runner-up, with Arlo-Mae and Eadie-Rae MacDonald (twins aged 4) highly commended.

Winner of the People's Choice Award, Sponsored by MAH Inspection Services: Henry Pitts (age 5)

Upset at seeing his local park full of litter, Henry went out litter picking every day during the school holidays collecting bin bags full of litter and recyclables which were then disposed of appropriately.

Mayor of Kirklees, Councillor Nosheen Dad, said:

"These awards highlight the fantastic work that so many are doing across all communities in Kirklees and allow us to congratulate them.

"Each and every one truly is an inspiration to others and show that together we can make combat the climate emergency and make Kirklees a cleaner and greener place to live, study and work."

Councillor Munir Ahmed, Cabinet Member for Environment and Highways, said:

"Our Recycling Hero Awards are a great chance for us to celebrate our Recycling Heroes for their efforts in recycling, reuse, repair, and reducing waste. From schools to businesses and residents of all ages, their collective efforts show that together we can achieve great things.

"On behalf of Kirklees Council, I want to say a huge thank you to all of those nominated for their contribution towards our ambitious target of Net Zero by 2038 and to each of our sponsors who made this year's awards possible."

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