ACE - Our History
In the spring of 1984 a group of volunteers in Clackmannanshire successfully raised funds to furnish a halfway house, which provided training and support to assist long stay patients in a nearby psychiatric hospital to regain their rightful place in society.
Due to the success of their fund raising venture the volunteers recognised the need for an ongoing business which would create local jobs and help alleviate poverty in a high unemployment area.
With the help of a £1000 Small Business Grant and one employee Alloa Community Enterprises Ltd (ACE) was launched in 1984. The first venture of the organisation was to establish a furniture reuse project. This project has grown and changed over the years and now we provide new and second hand furniture packs to over 250 homes every year in partnership with Clackmannanshire Council Temporary Tenancy Team.
From these humble beginnings arose what is now arguably the most successful community recycling business in Scotland, employing over 40 people and diverting last year over 19000 tons of waste from being sent for landfill.
The development of ACE beyond the furniture project began in 2000 when we became the first company in Scotland to provide a kerbside recycling service for householders. This service has supported Clackmannanshire Council to its place at the top of the UK recycling league table.
The business developed further by commencing a small business recycling service locally which has now expanded beyond Clackmannanshire and Stirling into servicing larger well known companies in Glasgow and Edinburgh.
Features in the Times and the Herald, and visits by Secretaries of State and Royalty, are indicators of how ACE has developed not only within its own right, but as a leader in the field of community based recycling and social enterprise.
The company is overseen by a team of voluntary directors, who are successful business people in their own right, chaired by the right honourable George Reid, one of Scotland's most respected political figures.
We recognise that having fine community ideals is not in itself enough. Our service levels and professionalism need to be of the highest standard to successfully compete for the business that then provides the profits to support our community ethos.
Achieving ISO 9001 and ISO14001 accreditation in 2009 highlights the commitment of ACE to professionalism in all aspects of the business, while recognition as 'Best Large Social Enterprise' in 2009 demonstrates also the benefits we have provided the community are real and tangible.
