A CALL has gone out for volunteers to help 'upcycle' Bicester's unwanted items as Bicester Green reopens at its new site.

The social enterprise works to stop rubbish going to landfill by upcycling broken or tired objects and breathing new life into them.

The group moved from its site in the McKay Trading Estate, off London Road, Bicester, in February after its lease was up.

It opened a new base in a converted container at The Yard, in The Garth off Launton Road, on Friday, July 7, with help from MP Victoria Prentis and Bicester town mayor Les Sibley, who cut the 'rope'.

Bicester Green centre manager Emma Gordon said: "The team at Bicester Green have been working since April to convert three forty foot shipping containers into purpose built workshops that are each dedicated to the refurbishment of particular waste streams and designed towards enabling volunteers to learn different repair skills."

The site has a workshop and a bike shop for residents to buy refurbished second hand bikes, plus the tool shed which focuses on refurbishing both electrical and hand tools.

There is also a wood workshop where volunteers can turn waste wood into fresh, new items and there is also the up-cycling centre hosting a series of courses for residents.

Ms Gordon added: "Mrs Prentis, who had previously visited the old site, said that that the new one 'was even more inspirational'."

The new site will be open Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays and is looking for new volunteers.

The first workshop will be staged on Tuesday for six people who are unemployed for one person looking to learn a new skill.

For more details see facebook.com/BicesterGreen