Aviva Community Fund has provided £2,520 of match funding
Help us build our mill!
Newtownards, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom
Aim
We want to provide real training and employment opportunities for local people and return a fibre processing facility to Northern Ireland.
We are Inspiring Yarns CIC, a community interest company based in Northern Ireland. Our team has worked in the yarn and textiles sector since 2016, creating projects that bring people together through craft while tackling social and environmental challenges.
In 2023 we launched WoolCycle, a Research & Development project that addresses two urgent issues:
Sheep farmers across Northern Ireland receive little or no value for their fleece, with much of it treated as waste.
Communities are disconnected from local textiles heritage and face growing environmental challenges from fast fashion and textile waste.
Our vision is to transform low-value wool into a resource that benefits farmers, communities and the environment. By repurposing fleece into felted fabrics and yarns, we can reduce waste, create sustainable materials for makers and designers, and revive a heritage industry with modern relevance.
The money we raise through this application will allow us to:
Invest in specialist equipment to process local fleece.
Establish training and volunteering opportunities, building skills and confidence in rural and urban communities.
Deliver community workshops, where participants can learn about sustainability, enjoy the therapeutic benefits of craft, and reconnect with local heritage.
Work with farmers to create a collection and reuse system that reduces the environmental burden of waste fleece.
Our long-term goal is to create a circular textiles economy in Northern Ireland – one that reduces carbon impact, supports local livelihoods, and inspires people to choose sustainable, locally made materials. Our vision for our building will be to have the most environmentally friendly manufacturing site in Northern Ireland which embraces the most natural ways to deal with each part of the process, including solar panels, rain water collection and exploring reed beds as a potential for waste water handling
With Aviva’s support, WoolCycle can demonstrate that wool is not waste, but a vital, renewable resource that strengthens both community wellbeing and climate action.
Aviva Employee Giving has provided £960 of match funding
This project successfully funded on 21st November 2025