From the back streets of Burley

19th November 2024

As Seagulls enters its twentieth year as a Limited Company it seems like a good time to reflect on our achievements and to remember just how far we have come. During our twentieth year I hope to write several reflective blogs that tell our story. To start here is a whistle stop timeline from the beginning to present day.

From small acorns…

Seagulls began with a seed of an idea by me, Cat. I had finished university, had made a vow to myself never to work in an office and was wondering what to do with my life. I wanted a worthwhile career. I started volunteering for a local project called – Hyde Park Source, painting bin yards in Hyde Park and Burley. I was inspired by the projects work and with the help of Joy (project coordinator) I started to discuss my idea. I wanted to start a voluntary organisation raising environmental awareness and providing jobs for myself and others. With Joy’s help I found like minded souls and together we bonded over the climate disaster and social justice.

From a kitchen table in Burley we developed and grew the idea of Seagulls. We started talking to people about environmental awareness and held the belief that one person’s rubbish is another’s gold. We wanted to make money from waste so we could provide volunteering, training and job opportunities for local people furthest from employment. We didn’t want to be reliant on grant funding. We chose a social enterprise structure.

To a damp cellar

In early 2004 we moved into Vicarage View, a small office with a damp cellar. Very few (if any) photos exist from this period. This was before we had mobile phones.

Through many conversations with Leeds City Council waste team we hit upon the idea of collecting unwanted household paint. There had previously been a scheme in Leeds but it had failed. We convinced LCC that this would be a good unwanted material for us to see if we could collect and reuse.

Becoming a limited company

On 31^st October 2004 we became a Limited Company

In January 2005 we started collecting paint from Pudsey household waste site. We didn’t have a van but we did have my car, a red polo. We put the seats down, covered the car in a tarp and started collecting paint (we would never get away with this now). We brought the paint back to our cellar and started giving it away. 

19 years at Aire Place

In the summer of 2005 we secured Lottery Funding for 3 years and in September 2005 we moved into Aire Place Mills- our home for the next 19 years.

There is so much to talk about in our 19 years at Aire Place, the development of our successful paint collection service and paint shop, the volunteers and staff members who have been on our journey, from the Boxing Day floods, weathering Covid, running a decorating service, a refills shop, gallery space, mosaic project, creative markets and a workshop. We have never been afraid to try new revenue streams (and stop them if they haven’t worked) and adapt as opportunities have arisen.

Here’s a few pics to give you a flavour of the above (and expect several more blog posts about the above!)

Our core values

Through all the years of experimentation and development we have always stayed true to our core values: Planet People Profit and you guessed it PAINT.

Paint is our vehicle that enables all our good work to happen, it is our life source, bringing in opportunities and money for the organisation to grow and flourish.

In December 2023 we were told that our Landlord was selling up and we would need to find a new home. We started looking straight after Christmas and quickly found our new home- 129 Water Lane. 

…large oak trees grow

Water Lane is a whooping 33,000 sq ft, that’s twice the size of Aire Place. After a lot of hard graft we opened the new paint store in June and in September we handed back the keys to Aire Place Mills. Our next chapter has begun and although we are tired we are excited for the years ahead.

It’s never a dull moment in Seagulls, everyday is different and although not always easy we can always find fun. The oak tree just got a whole lot bigger!

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Donate to make a difference over the next 20 years

Donations help us carry on the valuable work we do and we appreciate any amount that you’re able to give. If you’d like to support us in another way, come roll up your sleeves and consider volunteering.

Social enterprises rock and are the best type of business

19th November 2024

Q) What is a social enterprise and why are they the best?

A Social enterprise is a purpose lead business. A social business addresses social problems with commercial responses. We want to make profit for good.

Q) what do we mean by purpose?

Purpose is driven by inequality and injustice. A social business will always have people or the planet or both as its core motivations. 

To celebrate Social Enterprise day (21^st November) Seagulls and Leeds Wood recycling have come together to celebrate the marvellous work they do in the city of Leeds. Both enterprises have people and planet at the heart of their business. I asked their Founders and CEO’s some questions. Let me introduce you to Cat and Charlie.

Cat, Founder and CEO of Seagulls has developed and established Seagulls over the last 23 years. She came to Leeds from Bristol to go to University in 1998 and wanted to bring some of Bristol’s Independent spirit and recycling awareness to Leeds.

Charlie, Founder and Managing Director of Leeds Wood Recycling. LWR is part of a national network called National Community Wood Recycling Project which was founded in 2003. She founded LWR in response to a shout-out from the NCWRP, St Luke’s Cares, Hyde Park Source and LS14 Trust in 2018. Charlie saw an opportunity to support, educate and grow people whilst repurposing wood for the community.

Q) Why or who was motivated to start our organisations?

Cat- Seagulls was started by me as a direct response to a lack of recycling and reuse awareness in Leeds (there were no green bins at the time) and a desire to generate jobs for myself and others. I was and still am passionate about the environment and social justice. I believed that one man’s rubbish is another’s gold and I wanted to find a way to make money from waste. Obviously, it was a team effort establishing Seagulls, I worked with another Founding member for many years and gathered a team of like minded people to help. I had zero business experience and was fresh out of university!

Charlie – I have had a  variety of jobs which have always centred around people and practical skills. I’ve worked in theatre and the events industry for most of my career, alongside running a community pub and also working as a handywoman (whenever there was time). 

I’m known for rescuing items doomed for the skip and have a long list of stories about random junk I have repurposed into a new life. In my 20’s I was part of a house renovation which repurposed anything from roof slates to toilets, and have worked on theatre shows which raided local tips to make giant puppets to tour Europe. In short, I’ve always got my hands dirty. 

I’ve been a long standing Director of Scrap Creative Reuse and Louise’s introduction to the world of social enterprise has always been inspiring. I could see that many of the industries I have worked in did not prioritise waste and recycling and it wasn’t really aligned to my roots (daughter of a carboot queen) I was ready to do something with a purpose. So, in 2018 when there was a shout-out to set up a wood recycling enterprise in Leeds, everything dropped into place for me – and I was in!

Q) Why do you do what you do?

Cat- Simple, I wanted to make a difference to the planet and for people. I wanted a job with purpose. I wanted to create a legacy. 

Charlie – I do it because it makes sense! There is no logic in resources not being reused or repurposed! Repurposing timber is a great platform for us to upskill and offer free training to people. I love sharing skills with volunteers and people who come in. So yeah, to be honest I get a buzz out of things about getting a new life, and that people grow and get more confident. It’s a privilege seeing people’s whole lives change. I’m really lucky to have a job that does that.

Q) Why do you care about equality?

Cat- It sounds cheesy, but I have always felt very lucky with my lot in life. I had a comfortable upbringing and was surrounded by parents and grandparents who did worthwhile jobs. I wanted to make my family proud. I was very worried about climate change from a young age (think Greta but obviously not as influential) and very passionate about social justice. I felt inequality strongly and wanted to do something about this in my community.

Charlie- Like Cat really, I think life is really hard for many people. I want to be able to offer some kind of small change or at least respite from the many challenges people face. I’ve always been a people person, and my work with Mind the Gap Theatre company taught me so much about equality in particular for people with learning difficulties, which is why I’m so proud to have run the specialised work experience program in 2023 – which is now funded to start again in 2025! I’m just super passionate that we all need to support each other as a community, and give a place where we feel heard, and part of something.

Q) Why is it your job to tackle climate change?

Cat- it’s everyone’s responsibility to help tackle climate change. I wanted to show a practical and useful way to reuse a valuable material (paint) for the benefit of the environment and people. I felt keenly (and still do) that change is now or never. I feel sad that we haven’t really moved on in the past 20+ years but I try not to dwell on this and keeping plugging away at what is in my control. 

Charlie – It’s all of our jobs because we created the mess!! I think we have all lost our way with the things we use and consume. I guess it’s my job to keep repurposing in the conversation and show it’s not as complicated or inconvenient as people think. People feel powerless and sceptical that they can change anything, but I guess I want to highlight that because things can take more effort or time (repurposing something) it’s worth it, we can all make a change!

Q) Why is purpose more important to you than profit?

Cat- I guess I am not motivated my money. I do come from a fortunate position in that I have had support from my family but not in the sense of being given money on a plate but, for example my parents have been able to help with a mortgage and I was left a small pot of money by my grandparents and I wanted to do something purposeful with this as a legacy to their hard work. I also think profit and purpose are as important as each other. Without profit (or at least breaking even) Seagulls wouldn’t be able to do the work we do.

Charlie – Purpose is what gets you out of bed in the morning, profit (in personal terms) still needs purpose and connections otherwise it’s just a lonely possession, more stuff for the sake of stuff – that’s a bit deep. Sorry 🙂

Q) Why do you think you can make a difference?

Cat- why not? Thinking about it I have always been a passionate person. I channelled my worry about the climate emergency and my anger at the social divide into something useful. At Uni I spent a summer working in a BT call office and vowed never to work in an office again and I’m stubborn enough to have stuck to this vow.

Charlie – Because look how far we’ve come! I always say to our team, “let’s do one thing everyday to make things a bit better” It can be adding new mugs to the tearoom, moving stuff around to make it look better, or listening to someone talk about how they’re feeling. It all makes a difference, I guess I’ve always just believed in myself and those around me. Just being nice can make a difference.

Q) Why are you so special?

Cat- I’m not. I’m lucky to have had determination instilled in me and the belief that I can do whatever I put my mind to. I very much know my shortcomings (don’t ask me to do anything on an excel spreadsheet) and have never been afraid to ask for help. I feel very lucky to have the career I have and am very proud of the work of Seagulls and our contribution to the city of Leeds.

Charlie – I don’t think I’m special, like Cat I think I’m just determined and loyal.

These why questions were taken from Liam Blacks book ‘How to Lead with Purpose’. If you don’t know who Liam Black is he is a social entrepreneur Guru and his book ‘There’s no business like social business’ and his Cat’s Pyjamas training were very inspiring for Cat and other budding social entrepreneurs 20 years ago.

We hope you have enjoyed this blog and feel inspired to come and visit our enterprises. I will end this blog with a quote by the pioneer Florence Nightingale, as I’m sure Cat and Charlie are always in the surf, riding the waves:

“Rather, ten times, die in the surf, heralding the way to a new world, than stand idly on the shore.”

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Donate to make a difference over the next 20 years

Donations help us carry on the valuable work we do and we appreciate any amount that you’re able to give. If you’d like to support us in another way, come roll up your sleeves and consider volunteering.