Herefordshire and Worcestershire Master Composter Programme Details

Herefordshire Council and Worcestershire County Council, in association with WRAP (the Waste & Resources Action Programme) and Garden Organic are seeking volunteers for the new Master Composters Programme.

We are initially seeking 20 people, with an opportunity for a further 20 later in the year, with some spare time to attend events and assist our Home Composting Advisors in promoting home composting.

Volunteer activities include assisting at larger shows, visits to schools, demonstrations to family and friends, manning stands at farmer’s markets and small village shows, giving talks, helping establish community composting schemes and writing articles for parish magazines and much more.

In return for the two-day training, volunteers are expected to contribute a minimum of 30 hours over a period of 12 months towards promoting and supporting composting in their local community. All travel expenses are paid.

Background Information

Master Composter programmes were established over 10 years ago in the USA and Canada. These programmes have proved extremely popular and successful in promoting the benefits of home composting. There are a few other Master Composter programmes in the UK, but they are still a fairly new concept.

The main aims are to:

• raise awareness amongst the wider public of the benefits of composting
• encourage more people to home compost
• help those already home composting to do so more effectively

The Master Composter Programme is based on cascade learning techniques. It involves the engagement of community volunteers, who in return for training and support, act as composting ambassadors in their local neighbourhood. It is recognised that people’s attitudes and behaviour are not only influenced by the traditional routes of learning such as through schools, further education or government advice, but that people also learn and are influenced by other people around them, such as family, friends, neighbours or work colleagues and it is for this reason that community volunteers can provide a unique role in an education and learning programme.

Training

The initial training for volunteers includes a standard two-day foundation course, which is completed by all volunteers in the scheme. The first training session is planed for 22nd & 23rd April, the 22nd in Worcestershire and the 23rd in Ryton Organic Gardens in Warwickshire (all travel supplied) Volunteers are then invited to attend follow-up training sessions, choosing events and topics that are of specific interest to them.

The course content is as follows:

• The role and potential of home composting for waste minimisation, looking at the relevant legislation.
• The benefits of home composting to the environment and the householder.
• How to use compost
• An in-depth look at materials that can and cannot go into a compost bin, and those to be treated differently.
• The process of composting, what you need to do to ensure it works.
• Creatures you might find in a compost bin.
• Public speaking and presentations, how to promote home composting.

Technical and operational support package for volunteers

Worcestershire County Council and HDRA provides Master Composters with a comprehensive support package, consisting of both technical support and operational support. The support service supplements the initial training and is delivered by enrolling volunteers in the HDRA Master Composter membership.

The support package consists of

• The Master Composter Manual
• Master Composter Website
• Newsletters
• Directory of volunteers
• Garden Organic Membership
• Partnership agreements, policies and procedures
• Point of contact support

Information, Education and Promotional Resources

A number of other resources would be made available for the Master Composters too. This could include home composting display boards giving simple advice on the basics of home composting and/or other display materials and resources that are identified as useful.

Master Composters Qualification

Master Composter is a “qualification”, which in order to attain the volunteer needs to complete a series of training sessions in home composting and related environmental issues.  Once Master Composters have completed their qualification, the local authority are then able to call upon this pool of talent to support home composting schemes by using them to educate and advise other members of the community.

Examples of volunteer work carried out by Master Composters:

• Provide advice on home composting at a household level.
• Help promote sales of subsidised compost bins
• Promote the benefits of composting through the local media and parish magazines where possible.
• Set up displays to encourage home composting at garden centres, village fetes and other community events.
• Promote the sale locally of composts made from household green waste.
• Give talks to community, residents and allotment groups about the benefits of composting. Visit schools in their community to talk about composting and recycling and to support the schools composting/gardening/environment activities.