Oswestry Ironwork Centre making moves to 'go green'

The British Ironwork Centre near Oswestry is starting a series of initiatives to reduce waste on site and protect the natural environment, as well as hosting events to encourage visitors to get involved in a greener lifestyle.

Joanne Jones said: "We understand that there is a desperate need for global change and, rather than just shout about it, we want to start actioning important environmental change on a larger scale."

The second Plant Hunters Fair of the year takes place at the centre on Sunday, bringing together many of the finest growers and specialists from the area and will focus on the ways which plants help to benefit the environment.

Joanne added: "Inspired by this, we are planning to plant more bee-friendly plants across the site to encourage pollination and to allow our winged friends to thrive within the Ironworks’ environment. We also hope that our chosen plants will benefit those who choose to explore the centre, whether that be on foot or through the use of our on-site bicycle hire service – the perfect way to appreciate the natural world whilst getting some exercise."

The centre is in talks with Shropshire Wildlife Trust and hopes to give the charity a permanent on-site workshop to spread its wealth of environmental knowledge and educate visitors on ways to be more eco-friendly.

It is also starting on a journey towards becoming a plastic-free zone. All of the plastic ice-cream spoons are being replaced with wooden alternatives, straws are now paper and bosses have made the decision to no longer stock any drinks in plastic bottles.

Joanne added: "We are very excited to see what we can achieve by making these small, but very necessary, environmental changes to our site and hope that all of our visitors are as excited to take this journey with us."