The carpentry workshop and interior studio, Provoz 13, run by Charity Česká Lípa (Caritas Czech Republic), is a key part of the social enterprise ‘Let’s Give Things another Chance!’ This social enterprise upcycles furniture that would otherwise have become waste.
The advantage of Provoz 13 is that donors have the opportunity to see how their furniture is (re)used and what its future is. Provoz 13 has offered the production and renovation of furniture and interior design services for individuals or companies for three years now. Last but not least, it provides a furniture bank for people in need. The establishment and operation of the workshop is funded by the European Union.
Provoz 13 provides meaningful work for people with health disabilities who are able to work and improve their skills in a safe working environment, at a professionally equipped workshop together with a carpenter and an interior designer. One of the employees is Mr. Jonáš, a former client of the Charity Česká Lípa, who was staying at the Social Hostel in Nový Bor. Firstly, he was occasionally hired on a part-time job, but after a few months an employment contract was drawn up with him and he became a regular employee of the workshop. This is the practice that Charity Česká Lípa uses most often – giving job opportunities to its unemployed users of the charity’s social services who have disadvantages that limit them in their access to the labour market. In this way, social enterprise strives for their full integration and social inclusion, and increases their skills, and thus their chances on the labour market.
During its existence, Provoz 13 has managed to redesign the interior of a therapeutic room for children in the Centre for Educational Care in Frýdlant in Bohemia, a massage parlour by the Lipý water castle, and relaxation corners for students at the Česká Lípa Grammar School. For these projects, new design furniture was made and combined with renovated items of old furniture. At the same time, it has given jobs to people who would otherwise have been unemployed.
The work of the social enterprise is therefore very beneficial in terms of social inclusion, promoting the integration and full participation of people with disabilities in society, while at the same time making a significant contribution to environmental protection through the reuse of furniture.
