An employment charity is turning old books into cash with a new recycling project launched in Cowdenbeath.

The Shaw Trust has kicked off the Book Recycling project is a new social enterprise, in partnership with Bookdonors, which reuses and recycles unwanted books that would otherwise be sent to landfill sites, to raise money for charity.

The project team collects unwanted books which are then sorted to check their condition and scanned to assess their value. Books are then either:

Sent to Bookdonors for sale over the internet to raise money for charity
Donated to local community organisations, libraries or families with low incomes, to help develop children's reading skills
Recycled if they are not suitable for sale or donation

The Trust, which is based at the Woodend Industial Estate in Cowdenbeath is looking for donations of books - if you'd like to find out more about the project, volunteering opportunites and work placements, or to donate books, contact Janet Rennie on 01383 610263 or email janet.rennie@shaw-trust.org.uk

Ruaridh Maclean, Shaw Trust Project Manager, says: "The Book Recycling project gives new life to old books, benefitting the local community as well as helping to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfill. We collect unwanted books from libraries, charities and other community groups which are then either sold online to raise money for good causes or reused to benefit the community."

The Book Recycling project is expected to divert around four million books 1,300 tonnes - from landfill over the next year, generating an estimated £250,000 for charities, libraries and community groups.

In addition, the project provides work experience and training placements which enable local disabled and disadvantaged people to learn new skills and gain valuable work experience. The project has already created six jobs and 15 training placements, with that set to double over the next few months.