Countrystyle was proud to return as a sponsor for the ‘Outstanding Contribution to Recycling’ category in the 2019 LARAC Awards. Due to its continuous expansion, the awards took place in a new venue for 2019. Hosted at the Hilton Birmingham Metropole hotel, it was a successful evening for everyone in attendance and celebrated success for innovations from throughout the year.

Devon county council’s reuse project officer Catherine Causley was rewarded for her “extraordinary organisational skills”. After joining the local authority in October 2017, Ms Causley has set up a range of programmes including Devon Reuse Week, Devon Upcycling Day, WEEE repair events and the Big Fix, which broke the world record for the most items fixed at one repair café.

Attending on behalf of Countrystyle and presenting the sponsored award, managing director Chris Howard commented: “tonight celebrates real achievement in the industry. It is a great event each year where likeminded individuals congregate in celebration of innovation and passion in the industry. We at Countrystyle would like to offer our sincerest congratulations to the winners and runners-up!”

The LARAC celebration awards are the only dedicated awards for waste and recycling officers. The entries are judged by a panel of experts from across the waste management industry and local authorities.

The winners of the night included:

BEST COMMUNICATIONS CAMPAIGN OF THE YEAR Sponsored by PermiServ
WINNER: Recycle for Copeland | Copeland Council

BEST PARTNERSHIP AWARD Sponsored by Viridor
​WINNER: Clean Driver Scheme | Selby District Council

BEST TEAM OF THE YEAR Sponsored by Biffa
WINNER: Dorset Council

BEST WASTE MINIMISATION OR PREVENTION PROJECT Sponsored by Repic
WINNER: County Durham Single-Use Plastics Project | Durham County Council

BEST NEW IDEA Sponsored by mbg Plastics
WINNER: Modernising recycling services with digital technologies | East Devon DC

OUTSTANDING CONTRIBUTION TO RECYCLING Sponsored by Countrystyle Recycling
WINNER: Catherine Causley – Devon County Council