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What is Re~Cycle?

Re~Cycle is a charity (non-profit) and company registered in the UK. There is just one organisation, being both a charity and company at the same time. Charity number 1063570, Company number 3337853.  A board of trustees is in charge and staff and volunteers run the charity.

What does Re~Cycle do?

Re~Cycle receives unwanted bikes and parts, and puts them to good use in the UK and Africa.

Why does Re~Cycle only ship bikes to Africa?

We only work with partners in Africa, and we don't see that changing. - There are similar organisations to us in North America which can support Latin America and the Caribbean.  Eastern Europe is easier to support from mainland Europe.  Asia has huge bicycle market, so less need for bikes and we don’t want to damage local enterprise.

Which countries does Re~Cycle ship bikes to?

Currently most of the bikes go to Ghana, Liberia, Namibia, South Africa and Uganda and we have projects in Kenya and Lesotho.  For more details look on our African Partners page, HERE.

We are open to suggestions / applications for new African partners.

How many bikes has Re~Cycle shipped?

Please see the home page for up to date figures, including a break down of how many bikes have gone to each country.

How many bikes do you get in a container?

The number of bikes usually loaded is approximately 400 (say 380-420).  It depends on the sort and size of bike, as well as other special items (have shipped a rickshaw, and large woodworking tools in the past).  If there are a number of children's bikes there will be more as they're small.  Royal Mail (RM) bikes take up more space because the bikes are all adult size and with every bike there is a red basket frame and black plastic insert tray (both very valuable) which take up space.

Where do you get the bikes from?

Many of our bikes come from the public often together with a donation towards the charity running costs. Groups and organisations including Companies, Schools, Rotary Clubs, Churches and Scouts Groups etc. organise mass collections of bikes  and bring them to us. Local Police Stations and Colchester Borough Council donate abandoned bikes. Other bike recycling projects send us bikes surplus to their needs and we have many supporters in the Bike Industry including manufacturers, distributors and retailers. Saving the best for last, The Royal Mail give us their old bicycles, which are great as they are good quality bikes and designed for load carrying!

Are all the bikes you receive sent to Africa?

Yes apart from those in poor or damaged condition which are cannibalised for spare parts that are sent in the container loads of bikes for Africa. Some bikes are refurbished and sold to help towards our running costs.

What type of bike do you want and in what condition?

Please see the donate a bike section.

Where do I take my bike?

Please see the where to take a bike section.

How can I help?

You can help Re~Cycle by donating your bicycle, time, and/or money. Bicycles and spare parts are always welcome in any condition. We are always looking for eager volunteers to help fix bicycles and load the shipping containers for Africa. Monetary donations are always appreciated to cover the shipping and external costs.  Please see Get Involved.

Why not just buy bikes from, say, China?

Generally the bikes from China that are available in Africa are of very poor quality (even assuming that people could afford them) and our partners would rather have good quality used bikes and spare parts from the UK (and The USA and Canada) – see separate document [LINK].  Also, reusing bikes saves on the environmental costs of manufacture.

What about pollution from shipping?

If you think that horses used to pull barges, not much energy is needed to move a ship. However, shipping does produce pollution, and the growth of shipping due to globalisation is increasing the amount of pollution - There are global moves to make the industry cleaner and in April 2007 EU rules to combat sea pollution came into effect across European states starting, setting in place a system of penalties to prevent maritime pollution - It is relatively less polluting as compared to air freight.