AN AUTOMOTIVE recycling centre in Shedfield has been recognised for its charity scheme.

Silverlake Automotive Recycling has been awarded the Community Recycling Initiative of the Year at the inaugural Vehicle Recycling Excellence Awards.

The centre, based in Shedfield, was commended for its community involvement and specifically its U-Donate-A-Car initiative upon receiving the award on Friday, November 4 at the National Conference Centre in Bickenhill.

The charity scheme was relaunched in November 2021 to raise money for small community charities to help them recover from the pandemic. Silverlake appreciates the difficulties faced by people who might rely on organisations such as food banks, while the cost-of-living crisis has seen a decrease in charitable giving.

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With U-Donate-A-Car, customers can give anything from £5 to charities as part of the sale of their vehicle to Silverlake. All proceeds go towards Silverlake’s national charity partner, Global’s Make Some Noise, which distributes funds to community charities via its grant scheme.  

The Shedfield site pledged to raise £20,000 through the scheme in a year and is on track to hit its target. The initiative is backed by the Mayor of Southampton, regional media and Eastleigh Football Club. Students from local colleges entered a competition to design a car sticker for donators which is now in production.

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Managing director Allen Prebble said: “In the Southampton region, U-Donate-A-Car is providing funds to Abby’s Heroes, which supports children, teenagers, young adults and their families when diagnosed with cancer, and Andy’s Man Gang, a talking group and a place for men to come together in a safe environment to talk about issues and problems, helping to prevent suicide - the biggest killer of men under 50 - and support their mental health.

"The fact we can help to make a difference to these brilliant charities and more is what spurs us on. The award is the icing on the cake.”

Silverlake provides scrap car collections, car parts, online salvage auctions, salvage repair parts and tyres. For more go to silverlake.co.uk/.