Blue tits and blackbirds are nesting in the wildlife garden behind the Crow warehouse. The blue tits are making a nest in a nest box installed a few years ago and the blackbirds have chosen the hedge at the back of the garden. Hopefully the blue tits are on the alert for the sparrowhawks which sometimes swoop above the garden looking for small birds to eat. The garden was created with help from Warwickshire Wildlife Trust offering a habitat for birds and bugs. With a name like Crow the organisation might seem ideal place for birds to live  but in fact Crow is an acronym - it stands for Coventry Recycling of Waste.  

It is with great sadness that the Trustees of CROW Recycling wish to inform you of the sudden, unexpected death of Barbara Cowling. Barbara founded CROW in 1985 to provide work experience, based on recycling activities, for young people and adults with learning difficulties and/or other disadvantages. She retired from the post of manager in 2014 but continued as an unpaid volunteer until her untimely death last week. Her knowledge and expertise will be greatly missed but everyone involved, including her family, is determined to ensure that CROW will continue its valuable work.

Scores of second hand hula hoops are for sale at the Crow Scrapstore thanks to a generous donation. The hula hoops are great for garden toys and school or nursery playgrounds. They can also be cable tied together to make colourful sculptures. They're just 50 pence each. To buy hula hoops or anything else at the Scrapstore people must be members. It cost £10 for annual membership payable in cash or cheque when visiting the shop. Membership is open to organisations and indivuals. Scrapstore opening times are Monday to Friday 9.30am to 3pm and Friday 9.30am to 12 noon.

  Steel is magnetic but aluminium isn't - that was one of the lessons learnt by children from two groups who visited Crow Recycling this week. A year four class of eight and nine-year-olds from St Mary and St Benedict Catholic School in Coventry separated aluminium and steel cans using a magnet when they visited the Crow warehouse. They saw the can crushing and baling machines in action, had a go at sorting paper and fed sheets of paper into the shredder to make animal bedding. A group of home educated children from as far away as Walsall and Leicester also came to Crow for an educational visit. As well as learning about cans and paper they were full of ideas for making things from the waste materials donated to the Scrapstore.  

College and university students studying art may find materials they need for their courses at bargain prices at the Crow Recycling Scrapstore. Once students have paid the £10 membership there are a host of art supplies and craft supplies available at low prices, ideal for people who have to stretch their student loans to cover coursework materials. Fabric, ribbon, tester paint pots, paper and card are among supplies which art students can use to create top grade art works. The Scrapstore is open Monday to Thursday  9.30-3pm and Fridays 9.30am to 12 noon.  The Scrapstore is at Crow Recycling’s base at Orchard House, Sparkbrook Street, Hillfields, Coventry, CV1 5LB.

Blue Monday took a turn for the better at Crow Recycling with a thank you card from a teenager recently on work experience. It's a reminder that for the right person learning to operate machinery, completing tasks independently a getting a taste of taking responsibility in the workplace can make work experience at Crow a success. For school pupils the contrast with life in the classroom can be not just an eye opener but a confidence boost as well. To find out more about work experience at Crow Recycling click here. To sign up for e mail updates about work experience click here. To arrange a work experience placement ring Crow on 02476552444 or e mail crow@talktalkbusiness.net.  

  Would you like to bring your class to visit Crow Recycling? Pupils can find out how paper and used drinks cans are collected and prepared for recycling. They can see can crushing and baling machines in action. They can help sort paper into different grades ready for recycling. And they can find out how the sorted paper is shredded and baled to be reused as animal bedding or packaging. Pupils also visit Crow Recycling's Scrapstore to find out how waste materials are reused for arts and crafts. Educational visits to Crow Recycling are free and led by staff and volunteers with Disclosure and Barring Service checks. Can't make it with your class to the Crow premises in Sparkbrook Street, Hillfields, Coventry? Crow can send  someone out to your school to give a talk on recycling and reusing. For more information ring Crow Recycling on 02476552444 or e mail crow@talktalkbusiness.net. To sign up for e mail updates about school visits click here.  

Paper bales ready for delivery Work experience helps get CVs noticed and helps teenagers decide which job they want to do along with delivering a massive confidence boost. Secondary school pupils with special needs have chance to reap those benefits with a work placement at Crow Recycling in Hillfields, Coventry. The registered charity was set up in 1985 to provide work placements for disabled people by processing waste paper and used drinks cans for recycling. School pupils on work experience help with sorting, crushing and baling drinks cans along with sorting, shredding and baling paper. They also help run the Scrapstore where people can buy waste materials to use for arts and crafts. Pupils on work experience are supervised by staff and volunteers with Disclosure and Barring Service checks. To find out more about work experience placements with Crow ring 024 76 552444or e mail crow@talktalkbusiness.net. To receive email updates about work experience at Crow click here.   

  Crow Recycling can help with new year resolutions Taking up an art or craft The Crow Scrapstore has wool, fabric, paper, card and a host of other art supplies and craft supplies at bargain prices. Annual membership costs £10 - more information here. Boosting your CV with useful work experience and volunteering Crow Recycling offers work experience placements and volunteering opportunities tailored to people with disabilities and special needs. Short placements and volunteering opportunities also available for those without special needs. Clearing out large volumes of paperwork If you're heading back to a workplace which needs a clear out of old paperwork, including confidential documents, Crow can help. For more information about Crow's commercial waste paper disposal service click here. Earning cash for recycling Crow Recycling will pay for used drinks cans suitable for recycling. The more the better and Crow can sometimes collect depending on the amount and the location. A great way to earn some cash for a community group. For more information click here. Crow reopens after the Christmas and new year break at 9am on Wednesday January 2. The Scrapstore reopens on the same day at 9.30am.

Crow is closing for Christmas at 1pm on Friday December 21. The last entry to the Scrapstore is at 12.30pm. Crow opens again on Wednesday January 2 at 9am. The Scrapstore opens half an hour later at 9.30am. Merry Christmas from everybody at Crow Recycling.