Soft Landing graduation packed with inspiration

Eight trainees from Mission Australia’s Soft Landing Mattress Recycling program in Bellambi celebrated the completion of their 12-month traineeship last week at an on-site graduation ceremony.

Funded by the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations’ Jobs Fund, Soft Landing is a social enterprise that takes discarded mattresses destined for landfill and recycles them - tackling a significant environmental problem while providing training and employment opportunities to long-term unemployed people in NSW’s Illawarra.

At the graduation event, staff and guests acknowledged and praised the outstanding achievements of each of the trainees, who in the space of 12 months have achieved Soft Landing’s three-year goal of processing more than 20,000 mattresses.

“In our first 12 months of operation, Soft Landing has been extremely successful. We’ve won new business and experienced exciting growth - and it wouldn’t have been possible without the effort and dedication of our trainees,” said Bill Dibley, Southern NSW/ACT CS Operation Manager.

During the celebration, Mr Dibley announced Mission Australia’s Trainee of the Year award, which deservedly went to trainee Graeme Lamb (both pictured).

Graeme was honored last week at the NSW Training Awards dinner, being short-listed in the category of Waste Management and winning the category of Certificate II in asset maintenance.

His achievements are particularly outstanding given that only three years ago he was socially isolated and drinking heavily.

During his traineeship and after 13 years of not holding a driver’s licence, Graeme has not only obtained his licence, but also gained his truck licence as well as occupational health and safety, forklift, Certificate II in asset maintenance, first aid and fire safety qualifications.

Mr Dibley said Graeme is a truly inspirational person who captures everything that Mission Australia is about – transforming lives.

“Since completing the program he has been offered a permanent position in the program and will stay on to complete his Certificate III and be a mentor to other participants in the program,” said Mr Dibley.

During the NSW training awards dinner, Graeme said it was his third awards night he had been invited to since being in the program.

Mission Australia’s Soft Landing Mattress Recycling program works in conjunction with our Big Heart retail enterprise, which diverts more than 100,000 tonnes of clothing from landfill through seven Big Heart op shops in the Illawarra and south-western Sydney.

Last week Mission Australia’s Soft Landing program received more good news as the Minister for Employment Participation and Child Care, Kate Ellis and Federal Member for Cunningham Sharon Bird, announced funding of $600,000 from the Innovation Fund program for a new Feather Weight project.

This project will train and employ up to 11 job seekers with disabilities in recycling services, giving them the support they need to achieve accredited training in Certificate II in waste management.

You can read more about Graeme’s incredible journey, and view a video about Mission Australia’s Soft Landing Mattress Recycling program, here.

Big Heart Bellambi bounces back!

Good news for op shoppers in the Illawarra. Mission Australia’s Big Heart store at 16 Bellambi Lane, Bellambi, is back in action!

Today’s re-opening signals a major turning point for the store since it was damaged in a devastating fire in March of this year.

As well as being the site of Mission Australia’s Soft Landing mattress recycling social enterprise, the Bellambi Big Heart retail store acts as a sorting and distribution depot for the six other Big Heart stores in the region as well as a bulk sales outlet.

As a result of the fire, much of the Big Heart stock as well as the mattresses were either destroyed by fire, smoke or water damage caused by sprinklers triggered during the blaze.

This necessitated a major drive for donations of goods suitable for sale at the Big Heart shops.

“We are so happy to finally re-open our doors,” Bill Dibley, NSW Operations Manager for Social Enterprise, said.

“The local community have been extremely supportive and our volunteer team have been unbelievable in cleaning up after the fire.”

“I thank them all for their comment and dedication.”

Clothing sold from Bellambi outlet is still only $7 a kilo, shoes $2 a pair and books can be purchased 5 for $2.

As ever, the Mission Australia is calling out for volunteers at all of its Big Heart sites in the Illawarra region – Warilla, Dapto, Wollongong or Thirroul – or even the Nowra and Campbelltown outlets. According to Mr Dibley, there are several volunteering opportunities available at some of the retail outlets including retail assistants, drivers, offsiders and sorters.

To find out more about volunteering opportunities, please call 1800 110 578 or email volunteering@missionaustralia.com.au.

Further reading

• ‘Big Heart rises from the ashes’
• ‘Big Heart cleans up after weekend fire’
• Soft Landing - a Mission Australia social business working towards sustainability
• Find the location of the Belambi store at the Google map below.
  

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Official launch of groundbreaking Illawarra job program

Mission Australia’s Soft Landing Mattress Recycling – a groundbreaking approach to tackling a significant environmental problem while also providing training and employment opportunities to long-term unemployed people in the Illawarra – was officially launched yesterday at its headquarters in Bellambi.

Funded by the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations’ Jobs Fund, Soft Landing takes discarded mattresses destined for landfill and recycles them – an operation that currently provides jobs for eight trainees and four casual staff.

Special guest at the event was Sharon Bird, Federal MP for Cunningham.

Soft Landing’s manager, Lyn Watkins, said the initiative was a first for the area and it had big plans for the future.

“All the beds delivered to us get pulled down and broken into four key areas. The springs go to scrap metal recyclers, the foam is used as carpet underlay, the pulp fibre is used by a sporting goods manufacturer for punching bags and the timber frames are used for timber mulch or donated to a local men’s shed program where they are turned into kids toys,” Ms Watkins said.

“Over the next three years our plan is for Soft Landing to divert more than 78,000 mattresses from landfill – that’s 2,739 semi trailer loads!

“But Soft Landing is not just about sustainability. Over the same period we aim to create 20 ‘green’ jobs for the Illawarra. This includes 14 traineeships for Aboriginal and long-term unemployed job seekers.”

“Australia – and our own region – faces unprecedented environmental challenges that demand our urgent action. Australia sends 1.25 million mattresses to landfill each year. Each individual mattress consists of 12.5kgs of steel, 2kgs of wood and 1.5kgs of foam.

“We also have some serious issues in the Illawarra with unemployment. Despite the overall health of Australia’s economy, Illawarra’s unemployment rate is 6.6 per cent while the unemployment rate for 15-19 year olds looking for full-time work is 22 per cent.

“So Soft Landing is a unique approach to both these issues. We not only want to make a difference locally to our environment, we also want to help transform the lives of people who need our help,” said Ms Watkins.

You can find out more about the project at www.softlanding.com.au or for the warehouse location visit this link

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A new video has been released about the program, which can be viewed below or at our Youtube channel

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Landing a second chance in life

In the year it has been operating, Mission Australia’s Soft Landing mattress recycling program has provided 15 jobs for people in the Illawarra region of New South Wales.

Among them is Graeme, who works full-time at the Soft Landing warehouse in Bellambi. He uses pliers and an angle-grinder to strip old mattresses down to their raw materials, which are then put to good use rather than going into landfill.

For Graeme, the job is not just about earning a wage and helping the environment – it represents a second chance at life after many years of struggling with a drinking problem, unemployment and isolation.

“Twenty years ago I was injured in an underground mining accident and broke several bones in my back,” he said. “My marriage broke up and I was left to raise two kids. Then I was caring for my dad, who had bowel cancer. When he passed away I hit the grog badly – I was drinking four litres of wine a day.”

“Due to the drinking, the way I was feeling about myself, I wouldn’t even collect my mail unless I was drunk. I was drinking myself to death…

“To improve my life I did a warehousing course at the Mission Australia warehouse and haven’t looked back since.”

In 2009, Graeme was offered a casual position within the mattress recycling project pilot, which tested the viability of the business model. This year he was offered a full-time traineeship in waste management at Soft Landing, and has been passing his knowledge onto his new colleagues.

The bed springs he removes from the mattresses go to scrap-metal recyclers. The foam is used as carpet underlay. The pulp fibre is used by a sporting goods manufacturer for punching bags, and the timber frames are used for timber mulch or donated to a men’s shed program where they are turned into toys. The coconut husk used in some mattresses is currently being tested as weed matting.

“There’s much more to this than just cutting mattresses up,” Graeme said. “It’s good to help people in the community who are down on their luck. It keeps you connected with different types of people and you realise that people aren’t all bad. You’re happy to come into work every day.

“I’ve got my life back,” he added. “Life is improving day by day. I’ll be here until retirement – if they can put up with me!”

This week, with the help of the Soft Landing team, Graeme regained his car licence. “I have dreamed about this day for years. I am very grateful. This is a big deal for me.”

The participants working at Soft Landing were selected as they had multiple barriers preventing them from entering the labour market. Ninety per cent of the trainees are Indigenous, three have disabilities and all are long-term unemployed. The program will also offer 20 work experience positions for job seekers looking to gain skills in asset maintenance or waste management.

Over three years, the Soft Landing program will divert 78,260 mattresses – or 2,739 semi-trailer loads – from landfill. It is one of several social enterprises being housed in the new Mission Australia Bellambi warehouse.

You can find out more about the project at www.softlanding.com.au or for the warehouse location visit this link

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A new video has been released today featuring the program, which can be viewed below or at our Youtube channel

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