A lean green gardening machine

ROC Garden in Blackpool (part of the national charity, ‘Redeeming Our Communities’) have received funding from charity, FieldFenn Trust, who work to support young people find work and gardening projects, to purchase a work vehicle like no other!

As the focus leans closer to a full electric 2030, the ROC Garden team are paving the way for green transport that is both stylish, functional and fun to ride.

In Blackpool, ROC Garden works to empower unemployed people back into employment by offering training to help boost their skills and confidence by helping them become proficient gardeners. They then support social housing tenants locally with overgrown gardens. Over the last five years, they have started a social enterprise within the charity called ‘ROC Garden Services’ which now employs 12 staff (who each were originally volunteers) and have grown their customer base from just 30 to now over 400 regular customers.

One the greatest challenges the team faces is transport. Many volunteers joining them don’t have a drivers licence, which can be limiting factor when teams of gardeners are reliant of van drivers dropping off tools for them to use.

In addition, with the price of fuel, insurance and repairs going up for vans, it is becoming more and more expensive to run them efficiently, and it’s still too expensive for small businesses to purchase an electric van without large funding support to do so.

In partnership with Pashely, a well know British bike manufacturer in the midlands, they have been able to innovation a new idea that will revolutionise how their gardening teams can operate.

Pashely have designed something called an ALECS trike (Articulated Lightweight Electric Cargo Solution). The tricycle has a special tilting feature for the bicycle part at the front which allows the rider to take corners easier, ride faster and not worry about tipping over. The titling mechanism also acts as shock absorber and enables the trike to tackle speed bumps, high road cambers and bumps in the road with ease and no fear of tipping over. With an electrically assisted motor, it also has a large range to assist the rider with up to 100kg stored in the cargo area with ease, making even Warbreck Hill Road in Blackpool like a walk in the park! The trike even has head lights, brake lights and indicators, so you seriously can’t miss it. It is road legal and doesn’t require usual road vehicle insurance, road tax or fuel, with very cheap running and repair costs, which will save thousands of pounds every year compared to buying a new van.

The ROC Garden team have then customised the inside cargo of the trike to carry and safely store all the tools and equipment they need for 2 gardeners to work together with everything they need for regular maintenance and garden transformation jobs.

These ALECS trikes originally were designed for final mile deliver services, which are currently be tested by Royal Mail. But this gardening team have found a brand new use that will change the game all together.

Founder and Development Manager of the ROC Garden project said,”These new trikes will enable volunteers and staff without drivers licences to be independent and to be confidently ride the tools for jobs where they need them.””The trike will save us time, money and lost work waiting for van repairs, getting stuck in traffic and van driver sick days.””We are a charity delivering professional results and the trike itself is smart, professional in every way, and will catch attention whenever it’s out and about.””I am proud of our team for their innovative thinking and willingness to try something new. So far we have had it out on the road to complete a wide range of jobs, and it has worked perfectly ever time, freeing up more team members, and providing more much needed garden services to residents across the town.”

To learn more about ROC Garden and their work, to volunteer or to donate to support the charity, visit their Facebook page by searching for ‘ROC Garden Services’ or visit their website: www.roc.uk.com