A SUCCESSFUL social enterprise is set to expand further with the full-time opening of a shop selling reclaimed wood.

Blackbird Leys’ Raw Workshop is hoping to provide wood for keen DIY-ers at a cheaper price than commercial shops and boost the retail skills of the people it works with.

For the first time, thousands of pieces of wood, from plywood to pine, will be available to buy daily from the organisation’s renovated barn in Dunnock Way when the shop opens on weekdays from 9am until 4pm, with weekend openings planned in the future.

The wood has been collected from businesses the social enterprise works with including Blenheim Palace and housebuilders such as Cala Homes.

For managing director Rick Mower, the move into selling directly to consumers is another way of providing employment, training and volunteering opportunities to people across Oxfordshire.

The organisation, which works with people with learning disabilities, mental health problems or those from a disadvantaged background, had previously focussed on making wood products for businesses and only selling directly from its base on an ad-hoc basis.

Mr Mower said: “The wood we collect is all from businesses who would have to pay to dispose of it another way.

“For the regular person, wood bought it shops can be really expensive but we can sell it at half the price while also training people up in retail management - it’s good news for everybody.”

The wood shop will feature thousands of bits of timber and Mr Mower said most people will find something to suit their needs.

He imagines people will be able to use the reclaimed wood for outdoor planters, seating areas and shelves.

Raw is paid by companies to collect the wood which Mr Mower believes has saved dozens of journeys by polluting skip lorries.

Putting the wood to new uses is more cost-effective and better environmentally than recycling it and he predicts there will be a lot of demand from those seeking to renovate and improve where they live.

As well as training staff in key retail skills such as handling payments and selling goods, Mr Mower believes the shop will have the added bonus of helping them feel pride in themselves and their work.

He added: “When people shop with us they support the work we do but also get the chance to meet the people we work with and maybe that will change some of their perceptions.

“We do a lot of good but we also want to prove we can out-compete commercial alternatives and we will demonstrate that with the quality of our products and services.”

Raw opened in the 1840s barn, thought to be part of the original centuries-old Blackbird Leys Farm, last year since which time the social enterprise has expanded to take on more members of staff.