Skip Hire Blog

Pondskater Limited has dropped a floater! But they’ve nothing to be ashamed of. Far from it in fact, as the floater they’ve dropped is a revolutionary floating platform system which means SKIPS CAN NOW FLOAT!

The great new invention enables many types of cargo to be transported in skips and containers - on the water rather than on roads. The system is built to exacting engineering standards, and is a combination of rotary moulded flotation units and clip-lock frames, enabling multiple skip loads to be transported in the one shipment. The platforms are unique as the build cost is 85% cheaper and weigh 90% less than conventional barges.

The units are quite literally floating skips and each skip can carry approx. 22 tonnes or 22 yards of materials (they lock together in groups of up to 32 units).

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This enables large amounts of waste or building materials etc to be transported without the need to block the nation’s highways. It would also be an ideal solution to the waste transportation problems an event like the Olympics in London would cause.

There has already been substantial interest shown in the prototype system which has been widely demonstrated over the last two years, and the first production unit will be launched in London in late October. The initial emphasis will be on developing the U.K. market, on the basis that most major towns in the United Kingdom have long established but under utilised waterway networks. Pondskater Ltd will then be looking towards International markets such as the introduction of the system into Dubai to service the increasing number of water based resorts there, such as Palm Island and The World.

Speaking to The Skip recently, Les Balmer of Pondskater Limited told us:
"We firmly believe that this invention will bring substantial environmental benefits and will make the transition to multi modal transportation methods, with the focus on reducing road traffic, that much easier to achieve".

Ace contributor to The Skip magazine and Topskips customer service front-line, Paddy-Jo Malpas, explaining how she will be saving Orangutans and the rain forest of Borneo when she joins Operation Raleigh on the trip to Borneo in February 07 and how you can help by sending donations to help Operation Raleigh.

You can donate to Paddy's fund by Credit Card or Paypal on her blog here: www.paddy-jo.blogspot.com or by sending cheques made payable to "Operation Raleigh" to Paddy's Eco Mission, Topskips Limited, Baxall Business Centre, Adswood Road, Stockport SK3 8LF

Jayson Stanley, a tree care company director from Wendover has been hit with an eight month prison sentence after pleading guilty to fly-tipping in Buckinghamshire.

The 37-year old was sentenced at Aylesbury Magistrates Court after admitting to illegally dumping green waste during 2004 and 2005.

Mr Stanley’s sentence was suspended for two years but he has been served with a 200 hour community punishment order, given a fine of £3,000 and ordered to pay costs of £8,000.

Waste Partnership for Buckinghamshire and the Environment Agency have been working alongside one another for the past few years to catch fly tippers in the area. Surveillance cameras were installed in Wendover in late 2003 and Acacia Tree Care vehicles were caught dumping tree waste on several occasions between January and July 2004.

Then on 31 May 2005 passer-by witnessed an Acacia truck dumping green waste along Leather Lane, Great Missenden and reported the incident to the council.

John Warder, Chairman of the waste committee for Buckinghamshire spoke of how pleased he was that the clampdown on tipping is working, “Despite a very early morning dumping in a remote area, this proved to be another fine example of the public working with the authorities to combat fly-tipping.”

By Dunstan Carter

"All human beings... are commingled out of good and evil." – wrote Robert Louis Stevenson in 1886.

Little did he know how accurate that quote would prove to be when levelled at UK workers’ attitudes to recycling and the environment in 2006.

According to a new report, commissioned by Envirowise, most workers are environmentally friendly at home but frequently waste water and paper when they are in the office.

The report also claims that firms could save up to 32 million litres of water and a billion sheets of paper every day if people were as eco-friendly at work as they are at home.

Envirowise, which promotes eco-friendly business practices, said one in three workers do nothing to cut back on the use of water or paper. A survey of almost 2,000 adults revealed that one in five recycle nothing in the office and one in seven has no idea how much paper they use every day.

The report also claims that offices across the UK are needlessly wasting around 310 million litres of water every single working day.

Electricity is also wasted, with very few offices installing energy-efficient light bulbs and with many computers being left on overnight. Inkjet cartridges are also rarely recycled – which is a global problem with more than 1.1 billion cartridges being used annually around the world.

It doesn’t take a genius to realise that all this waste is becoming a major problem and one that the UK has to address.

In her 1975 book, A Gift for God, Mother Theresa wrote, “I only feel angry when I see waste. When I see people throwing away things we could use.”

So, WAKE UP BRITAIN, and start recycling in the workplace. You wouldn’t want to upset the ghost of Mother Theresa would you? Thought not!

This is an archived news story from "The Skip" Magazine. If you would like to know more about the magazine click on The Skip to find out how to subscribe and see what our readers think about it.

We love it when people say nice things about our skip hire industry magazine, and here's some proof that we don't make these testimonials up from the RWM Show in September 2006:

‘Every Loser Wins’ sang Nick Berry in the mid 1980’s. And for Burnley FC, losers in the 1988 Sherpa Van Trophy Final, that phrase was never truer as they picked up their runners up medals on that fateful Spring day.

One member of the team however, lost his medal and he’s never tried to get it back.
How does The Skip know this? I hear you holler!

Well, six years ago, Ivor Ball, a retired scrap metal worker from Rochdale, found the missing medal in a skip and after years of doing very little about it has recently launched a public appeal to track the owner down.

Ten of the original twelve players who played on that day have been contacted and are all say they still have their medals; as does the manager at the time, Brian Miller. This leaves only the captain, Ray Deakin or utility player, Shaun McGrory as the medal’s rightful owner.

Burnley lost the final 2-0 to Wolverhampton Wanderers 18 years ago but the day is still remembered fondly by Burnley fans as the intervening years have been very barren on the medals front. The medal has also been verified by the FA so there’s no chance that it’s a copy or a fake.

Sarah Meakin, a spokesperson for Burnley FC has said the medal will end up in a memorabilia museum if it remains unclaimed.

So, Mr Deakin and Mr McGrory, if you’re reading this article and you’re eager to get the medal back so that you can brag about it to your kids or bore your mates with your loser medal stories down the pub, get in touch with us.

Losing is nothing to be ashamed of boys!

The tranquil scenery of Orton Woods is a place where many a rambler goes to enjoy the view and the last place on earth where you would expect a great, big, dirty skip. Yet disgusted walker, Keith Smith came across a builders skip blocking his way when out for his daily morning walk.

Not only was the skip dumped near the local beauty spot of Snowdrop Corner, it had also been filled with cement which had set, making it impossible for the skip to be moved.

Mr Smith said: “This is another example of an act of vandalism against the countryside and another cost to the taxpayers of Peterborough for its clearance.”

The sight has been made ever worse by the fact that huge vehicle tyre marks have damaged the area.

Distraught ramblers have tried to contact the Peterborough council, but they are denying all knowledge of being informed of this atrocity.

Peterborough City Council’s community safety manager Christine Graham said: “Now we are aware of this issue, our officers have been down to the footpath to assess the problem and we will remove the skip as soon as we can.”

David Lewis a postman from Ystradgynlais in Powys has been found guilty of stashing over 40,000 letters in one of the biggest cases of undelivered mail Britain has ever seen.

David Lewis's lethargy was only discovered after he decided to move house and decided to dump the mail in recycling skips.

Workers at the local recycling facility became suspicious when they spotted the envelopes and junk mail and informed bosses.

The Royal Mail investigated and Lewis, 53, confessed to destroying and trying to destroy the stash.

The former postman, has been jailed for four months after pleading guilty at Neath Magistrates' Court to damaging around 100 postal packets by setting fire to them and attempting to destroy up to 40,000 more by putting them in skips to be recycled.

James Pearn, defending Lewis, said, "Throughout the whole offence, Mr Lewis did not deliberately fail to deliver addressed mail, was not deliberately hiding mail and was not deliberately storing mail."

He informed the court that Lewis left surplus door-to-door mail in his van and this built up while he was on the sick - for six weeks when he broke his ribs and for 20 weeks when he had a hernia.

"On those occasions addressed mail he assumed, wrongly, had been dealt with while he was away from work but sadly wasn't. [It] became mixed up with the door-to-door mail, which he transferred from the vehicle to his garage," Mr Pearn said.

On sentencing him, chairman of the magistrates Howard Davies said, "Your actions have caused a great deal of harm not only to your employers, to whom you were in a position of trust, but also the community who lost goods and services to which they were entitled.
"This was aggravated by your efforts to dispose of the mail with the skips."

A Royal Mail spokeswoman said, "This conviction underlines the fact that we take decisive action and will seek to prosecute all those found responsible for dishonesty."

There’s been a bit of a buzz around Warwick recently…

Bottle banks set up by Warwick District Council have caused a nightmare for residents living nearby. Smashing glass and angry wasps are only the beginning of a long list of problems that are caused by the recycling banks. Shopkeeper Kay Lazecky has complained to the council and tells The Skip magazine that the banks have made her life a misery ever since they were set up. Woken early in the morning and kept awake late at night by the loud crash of glass, she says life is becoming intolerable and she is at her wits’ end. Worse still, Lazecky is allergic to wasps, and the insects have increased in numbers and have even set up home by the tip. The problem has become so severe, Lazecky has to sleep under netting to avoid being stung at night. (Perhaps we could offer her some discount on the netting? Just a thought! – Ed)

Warwick Council have admitted that the bottle banks have raised environmental health issues and health and safety inspectors have visited the site, commenting that they could easily attract vermin. So maybe Lazecky’s in luck.

District Council spokesman Richard Brooker commented, “We will do whatever we can to find an alternative site for the recycling centre if we can have it moved.”

A 32 year old man from Accrington threw himself in front of a train just hours after filling a skip with everything he owned.

Christopher Reynolds died instantly after suffering massive head injuries on a stretch of track located between Rishton and Church in Lancashire.

Mr Reynolds suffered from learning difficulties at school and had never been employed. In an inquest into the suicide, the court heard how Mr Reynolds stood in front of the train and adopted a ‘crucifix pose’ as it hurtled towards him at nearly 50 mph.

Anthony Reynolds, father of Christopher, told the court how his son had become a bit of a recluse in the months leading up to his death but that everything seemed fine with him on the day of his suicide. Only ten days earlier Christopher had hired a skip but Anthony was unaware of his son’s plans.

“I don’t know why he did it but he put everything from the house in the skip,” Mr Reynolds said before adding, “I didn’t know until it had been done, otherwise I would have talked him round.”

The driver of the train, Geoffrey Cowell, described how after switching of an automatic alarm just outside Rishton he looked up to see a man on the tracks staring up at the train and putting his arms out in a crucifix pose.

Mr Cowell applied the brakes immediately but it was too late and the train didn’t stop until 200 metres further down the line.

Builders starting work on the former Warwicks and Richardsons brewery got a lot more than what they bargained for when they carted away a whopping SIX skips full of pigeon mess from the site.

The brewery in Newark is to be turned into apartments after falling into disrepair after brewing ceased in 1966. The developers, Newark Property Development Ltd. are hoping that the building work will start within a year, after the preliminary clearing work is finished.

Mr Rick Elliot of Newark Property Development Ltd says that they are doing their best to stick to their schedule and get the job done on time. Locals think the building is an eyesore and are welcoming plans to move forward.

Asbestos has also been removed from the roof, prompting the team at The Skip to wonder if there is anything hidden under all that pigeon crap?

University bosses have been forced to back down on a decision to ban Norris Skips from the grounds of Greenwich University.

Norris Skips were banned because the firm share the surname as one of the five men accused of murdering black teenager, Stephen Lawrence in nearby Eltham in April 1993.

The original decision to ban Norris Skips was seen as political correctness gone mad and was labelled as ‘over-sensitive’ by local MP, Derek Conway.

Stephen Lawrence’s mother, Doreen, has strong links with the University and achieved a BA Honours degree in Humanities in 1995. In 1997 she also completed a post-graduate programme in Counselling Skills and in 1999 was awarded a Diploma in Therapeutic Counselling.

Kieron Norris, manager of Peter Norris Haulage Ltd, stated that the situation has now been resolved and his company has since been allowed back onto the site to complete its £30,000 job.

Bosses at the University refused to comment.

A CCTV camera that was fitted to a lampost in Queens Park, Bedford to catch fly-tippers has been removed and now the litter louts are back.

The camera had been placed on Old Ford End Road beside a notorious fly-tipping hotspot, but was taken away in order to tackle crime elsewhere in the borough.

One local resident commented, “While the camera was there it was quite effective, but apparently it was needed at Priory Marina because of vehicle crime, and since it was removed the fly-tipping has got completely out of hand.

“It’s a daily problem, which the council deals with by sending someone out to clear the rubbish up. But now people know their rubbish will be taken away if they leave it there, while some even think it’s an approved dump.

“Actually it’s an atrocious mess. People are turning up and leaving their garden waste, flower pots, planks of wood, general rubbish – they just dump it all over the pavement.”

Borough Councillor, Muhammad Khan, whose well aware of the problem, responded by saying, “Some people are demanding skips to be emptied on a regular basis as a solution. But who is going to provide them and bear the expense? Ultimately it will come back on the taxpayer.”

A Borough Council spokesman added, “We take fly-tipping very seriously. (but) This camera has been relocated following a request by the police. We are continuing our efforts to catch and prosecute persistent offenders.

“We encourage anybody discovering an incidence of fly-tipping to report it to the council’s environmental hotline (0800 121 8888), so that it can be investigated and removed.”

The dumping continues.

Plans to remove four manned amenity skips have been met with anger from council tax payers after South Shropshire District Council revealed that they were becoming a budget concern. Removal plans have stalled however due to the amount of complaints received by worried locals.

The skips, located in Bishop’s Castle, Church Stretton, Cleobury Mortimer and Craven Arms, were initially due to removed for good on 1st October in the effort to save £85,000. But now waste disposal firm, Biffa, has told the council that the savings can only be achieved if yet another site at Coder Road, Ludlow is also shut.

SSDC’s director, Bill Jones, says that the council is still receiving numerous complaints about the closing of the skips and that plans for the council to meet and discuss the issue have been scrapped to fully consider the suggestions being put forward to them.

Mr. Jones reassures all council members that the current level of service will be maintained at least until the end of March next year and that the council are left in no doubt as to the strength of public feeling about the skips.

UK Recycling company prove, “There’s snow business like waste business”

Waste recyclers Pearsons are making friends with the penguins after landing a contract to handle waste generated by scientists in Antarctica.

The Thetford based company are delighted that BAS (British Antarctic Survey) chose them ahead of strong competition from other waste recycling companies in the UK.

Managing Director Jo Pearson ARCTIC-ulated his delight and slight bewilderment over the news by stating,

“We pride ourselves on being able to handle just about anything, but recycling waste from Antarctica is unusual, even for us!”

Rod Dowdie, Environmental Manager at BAS commented on the contract by declaring,

“We were impressed with Pearsons because they really engaged with us and seemed genuinely interested in what we are doing. We have a legal requirement to recycle and we are committed to it.”

Up until recently only a small percentage of the waste generated had been shipped over to the UK and much more was being dumped into landfill sites on the Falkland Islands. This meant much less recycling, making the latest situation great news for the environment.

Pearsons are one of Norfolk’s largest waste recyclers, employing 90 people and with annual sales of more than £8m. They have also recently acquired a number of smaller businesses and now provide skip and recycling services throughout the Eastern Counties… and Antarctica.

British Antarctic Survey is a world leader in research into global issues in an Antarctic context, including the study of climate change both today and in days gone by. It is the UK’s national Antarctic operator and is a component of the Natural Environment Research Council. Currently it runs nine research programmes and operates five research stations, two research ships and five aircraft in and around Antarctica.

She probably doesn’t mind – but that’s not really the point is it?

A distressed family turned up to visit their granny, Ann Farrelly’s grave only to find a skip on top of it.

Relatives of the recently deceased grandmother arrived to find they couldn’t leave flowers on her grave or even pay their respects.

When asked about the situation Ann’s daughter, Angela McHugh said,

“We arrived with a wreath and found the skip just sitting there, blocking out the flowers and memorial. We were on holiday when she died and did not get to say a proper farewell, so this is upsetting.”

Ann was buried in May of this year in Wellingborough, Northants.

A council spokesperson said that putting skips on graves was a standard procedure when digging up fresh graves nearby but conceded that the situation, “…may have caused some upset to the family.”

An 86-year-old aged pensioner was left with just the shirt on his back (and some plastic cutlery) after social services threw all his possessions into a skip.

Alec Watson who lives alone in Hallaway, Carlisle was left in tears after coming back to his house and finding all is worldly belongings squashed into a measly 4 cu yd skip.

A five-strong team came to Watson’s house last week and threw out ALL his clothes, ALL his bedding, and ALL his electronic equipment. He was left with a plastic knife and fork and spoon to eat with and spent the night shivering in a sleeping bag as his duvet was dumped in the skip.

But Cumbria services have said lonely Mr Watson agreed to his possessions being thrown out and that the matter had been fully discussed with his social worker.

Mr Watson came back at the council declaring that their discussions only involved the opportunity for the council to polish, clean and vacuum.

He said, “There was a lot of mess but I thought they were going to tidy up a bit. There was china in the cupboard wrapped in newspaper, they threw that out.

“I just sat in the chair and didn’t say anything, I didn’t know what to say. When they left, I started crying.

“I went to shave but my shaver and cream were gone.”

Neighbours were furious when they found out what had happened to the harmless loner, and refused the skip driver to pick it up. Delving into the discarded waste afterwards, the concerned residents managed to retrieve Mr Watson filthy diabetic equipment. Shocked onlookers stood and stared as wartime memorabilia, stereo, seven pairs of trousers and a colander was saved from landfill.

Mr Watson added, “I feel like my home has been invaded. I don’t want anything more to do with the social services.”

But social services got in touch with him after other neighbours raised concerns about the revolting smells coming from his house and his general trampy appearance. Margaret McDonald, a visitor to his house, often cooked and cleaned for him.

“I had to go out and buy him new razors, toiletries and cutlery the next day. When I complained, social services asked us to take what he wanted out of the skip.”

“I am sickened.”

Sue Bowman, adult social care area manager for Carlisle, said, “We are sorry to hear that Mr Watson has been upset by the clean up of his house. He agreed to it some time ago and a social worker and care team have visited him several times to discuss and agree the process.

“A team of four women and one man spent the day at Mr Watson’s home and cleaned and tidied the house from top to bottom.

“The care team was at pains to make sure that he agreed with every step of the process and Mr Watson OK’d the disposal of every item that was thrown away.

“They made his bed up with a clean, lightweight duvet and put some food in his cupboards. When they left Mr Watson said he was very pleased with the work – the care team are now distraught to find out that he is upset.

Mr Watson’s social worker will be visiting him as soon as possible to see if there is anything we can do to ease his distress.”

Police wildlife officers have launched an investigation after a dead badger was found in a skip in Burnley.

The dead badger, discovered in Hobart Street, was tucked in amongst rubble and wood and police believe it may have been dumped there.

A woman walking past the skip on Saturday lunchtime mistook the dead animal for clothes before double taking and seeing the beasts blood everywhere.

“It’s appalling someone would do this”, she said, “There were teeth marks down its side. It looked horrific!”

The Skip magazine are unsure whether or not this means the person who dumped the badger tried to eat it first but we urge anyone who's ever tried badger to get in touch with us and tell their tale.

Burnley Police issued a statement confirming that, “The incident has been passed to a wildlife officer who will make enquiries”.

Ex-truck driver Jamal Williams is LAUGHING all the way to the bank after launching a successful employment website using a laptop he found in a SKIP!

Mr Williams, 45, found the computer by ACCIDENT whilst working as a skip truck driver in Swindon and his site www.thepolishplumber.com is currently receiving a staggering 12,000 HITS per day (or so he says).

“It’s all happened overnight” he told The Skip, “and it’s ABSOLUTELY CRAZY. One day I looked into one of the skips I’d collected to see what goodies it might contain and I saw an old waterlogged laptop.

“I took it home and hung it on my washing line to dry out. I switched it on, and to my surprise, it worked perfectly.”

What makes the story even more amazing is that up until he discovered the computer, Mr Williams had never had any computer training in his life. He simply plugged the computer in and started studying at home using library books and free internet software until he had the website designed and primed for action.

“It’s almost beyond belief that a man with no training can set up a fantastic business so cheaply” Mr Williams added.

“The key to the site’s success is its domain name – ‘The Polish Plumber’. The brainwave came when I heard the phrase used on the BBC News about the influx of new emigrants to the UK from Poland. With migration such a hot topic these days, the phrase is hardly out of the media.”

Mr Williams is now hoping to use the wealth that he has created to set up a number of businesses in his native Jamaica but confesses that he will never end his love affair with skips and the treasures they sometimes contain.

“I LOVE LOOKING IN SKIPS” he admitted, “in fact I can’t walk past one without a quick look in.

“Over the years I’ve found printers, cameras and even a set of antique silver spoons. I love it – IT’S BETTER THAN SEX!”

“The streets of Britain may not be paved with gold” Mr Williams concluded, “but the skips and bins are full of golden opportunities”

What a guy!

Mark Chung, a 31 year old prisoner has escaped from Ranby prison in Nottinghamshire by hiding in the back of a skip.

Chung, who is serving a seven year sentence for drug dealing was seen jumping from a skip after it was removed from the prison in the early hours of Wednesday 7th September.

The driver of the skip truck watched helplessly as Chung hurtled out of the container as the vehicle pulled into an industrial estate on Sandy Lane in Worksop.

Police instantly released a photo of the convict and he is described as a white man, 5ft 9 inches tall, of medium build, with a shaved head. He is also believed to be wearing forest green trousers and a t-shirt.

Chung is thought to be very dangerous and the people have been warned not to approach him under any circumstances.

Detective Inspector Dave Sinclair of Nottinghamshire police informed a worried public that, “Chung is probably extremely dirty and may look dishevelled and wet due to hiding in the waste lorry. Anybody who sees a man fitting his description is asked to contact us immediately.”

At The Skip we are now adding convicts to the long line of things we dislike finding in skips (see also dead badgers, asbestos, fridges, rubber tyres, stun grenades and missiles!)