ILKLEY Wharfedale Rotary Club’s annual Recycling Day will be held in the town’s central car park on Saturday, September 30.

The event started four years ago as Recycle that Bicycle with the collection of unwanted bicycles but has since grown to take in sewing machines, wheelchairs and mobility aids, spectacles, hand and power tools plus workshop equipment.

Rotary members will be on hand to receive all donations in the main car park, off South Hawksworth Street, from 9am to 2pm.

“We were astonished in our first year of ‘Recycle that Bicycle’ by the number of bikes donated and the event has grown in response to people asking if we could make use of their other old pieces of equipment, like sewing machines, mobility aids and power tools etc,” said Rotarian John Brash.

“We know we can bring them back to a new life for various people in need, so we hope this event will be just as successful as those in previous years. Items of any size and in any condition will be gratefully accepted.”

Bicycles and wheelchairs are refurbished by the Keighley based Margaret Carey Foundation, who run workshops in various prisons in England, so that prisoners can learn new skills and contribute something back to society. They are then donated to people in the Third World who need them but can’t afford them. Mobility aids - including walking frames, crutches and rollators - are refurbished by the PhysioNet charity and will also make their way to the Third World.

Another partner charity involved is the Ilkley based volunteer group Tools for Africa who refurbish and send items to the Workaid charity, who then assemble them into “kits” suitable for business start-ups. They are particularly looking for hand tools (but not gardening equipment), power tools, workshop equipment and sewing machines - which will enable people in Africa to start businesses, earn a living and kick start local economies.

Unwanted spectacles will be sent to SpecSort – a Rotary charity based near York, who classify spectacles according to strength and refurbish them ready for distribution in Africa.

Last year the club collected 106 cycles, 19 sewing machines, 178 pairs of spectacles, seven wheelchairs plus other mobility aids and three trailer loads of assorted workshop equipment, hand and power tools.

Further details can be found on the Rotary Club web page – look up Ilkley Rotary Recycle.