Welcome to the Able Project
The ABLE project is in fact two projects. An established project, ABLE1, in Wakefield that is now well on its way to sustainability, and a new site in Heckmondwike, near Huddersfield, – ABLE2 that has recently been donated by Kirklees Council, for which plans are currently being developed. The sites are linked by common aims and objectives:
- To develop a sustainable fish farming and horticulture operation.
- To use the sites to provide accredited training opportunities for those children whose special needs are not met by the current education system, as well as young people from the probation services.
- To become an exemplar site in the provision of Outdoor Learning.
The site in Wakefield is a working partnership between the Green Business Network (GBN), Yorkshire Water, Wakefield District Primary Care Trust (WDPCT), and West Yorkshire Probation Service, for the ecological and economic regeneration of a 34 acre former landfill site at Caldervale sewage treatment works in Wakefield. At the heart of this activity is a large scale fish farming operation, rearing Sturgeon, ornamental and edible Carp, Catfish, and soon to include Tilapia, on a commercial basis, to meet identified local community, minority and school demand.
The objective of the project is to provide training and learning opportunities to young people from several groups: those identified as being in danger of exclusion from school; those already excluded; groups from the probation service; and young people recovering from substance misuse. The site is already used by a substantial number of young people. In 2006 alone, the first year that young people used the resources at the Caldervale site, and purely by reacting to demand, it was host to 681 children and 455 probation workers.
Work on planning ABLE2 at the site in Heckmondwike is now progressing with partners including Kirklees Council, West Yorkshire Probation Service, and the Environment Agency.
The Future
The project could be replicated nationally. Yorkshire Water plc have identified at least five other sites situated throughout West and South Yorkshire that they believe may be suitable for diversification of the best practice already piloted by the ABLE project. Each site is however significantly different and will provide new and additional opportunities over and above those achieved on the Wakefield site. These sites are of common interest to many existing and potential partners, being brownfield sites, in urban areas, with local disadvantaged communities, the availability of waste materials and are in assisted funding areas. Funding is now being sought for a major expansion onto these new sites, providing a truly large-scale environmental model that could be replicated into many other areas. It provides a chance for all partners to be involved with something that is real, practical and made to happen on the ground!