Containers for Change partnership delivers for West Australians with disability

VenuesWest is proud to announce Good Sammy Enterprises as our newest Containers for Change partner, delivering on the organisation’s commitment to sustainability and creating inclusive employment opportunities for Western Australians with disability. 

Following an expression of interest process, VenuesWest selected Good Sammy to manage the collection and processing of eligible containers from eight VenuesWest self-managed venues.

The partnership supports VenuesWest's commitment to environmental sustainability while delivering positive social outcomes for Western Australians. Containers collected from VenuesWest venues will be collected, sorted and processed by Good Sammy employees with disability, helping to sustain jobs, build workplace skills and create pathways to greater economic participation and social inclusion across Western Australia.

In addition to increasing recycling and resource recovery outcomes, the partnership demonstrates how environmental sustainability and social impact can work hand in hand to deliver lasting benefits for the community.

VenuesWest joined the Containers for Change initiative in October 2020, collecting more than 470,000 containers, saving 9.2 tonnes of waste from landfill and 88.4 tonnes of CO2 from the environment.  

In addition to the income generated for Good Sammy and its employees, 100 per cent of recycling proceeds that are returned to VenuesWest are donated to VenuesWest Community Partners. Almost $47,000 has been donated over the life of the initiative, including $12,000 in 2025-26. 

Good Sammy will collect containers from Arena Joondalup, Bendat Basketball Centre, Champion Lakes Regatta Centre, Gold Netball Centre, Perth HPC, SpeedDome, Sam Kerr Football Centre and WA Athletics Stadium until August 2028. Other venues including RAC Arena and Optus Stadium will continue to participate in the scheme under separate partnerships.

The partnership aligns with VenuesWest's newly established Environmental Sustainability Strategy 2025-2030, which supports the organisation's commitment to reducing waste, increasing resource recovery and delivering more sustainable outcomes across its venues. 

Containers for Change has successfully increased Western Australia’s resource recovery outcomes and diverted billions of containers from landfill since its launch in 2020. From 1 July, the eligibility of containers in the scheme was expanded to include almost all beverage containers between 150mL and 3L. 

Comments attributed to Environment Minister Matthew Swinbourn:

"Containers for Change has become one of Western Australia's most successful environmental initiatives, diverting billions of containers from landfill and delivering lasting benefits for communities across the State.

“This partnership between VenuesWest and Good Sammy highlights the broader value of the scheme. Alongside these strong environmental outcomes, it supports an organisation that is both a leader in resource recovery and a significant contributor to disability employment in Western Australia."

VenuesWest CEO, Janis Carren said:

“VenuesWest is pleased to partner with Good Sammy, which is a well-regarded Western Australian organisation that will create positive outcomes for our organisation, the community and Good Sammy employees.

“The partnership supports the objectives of our Environmental Sustainability Strategy by reducing waste, improving resource recovery and supporting sustainable outcomes across our venue portfolio.

“As we continue to welcome more visitors through major sport and entertainment events across our venues, VenuesWest is pleased to have a strong partner in Good Sammy to help us achieve our sustainability objectives.”

Good Sammy Enterprises CEO, Kane Blackman said:

“We are proud to partner with VenuesWest to collect containers from their sporting and entertainment assets across Western Australia.

“Good Sammy is the largest social enterprise collector in the Containers for Change Scheme. By choosing Good Sammy, jobs for people with disability are created - driving the trucks, counting the containers and processing the 10c refunds, all while delivering a quality and reliable service to venue managers.

It’s a win-win for Good Sammy and VenuesWest, and consistent with the social enterprise objectives of the Scheme and the disability employment goals of VenuesWest and the WA State Government.”

WA Return Recycle Renew Limited, CEO, Dr Kate Brooks said:  

“As the coordinator of Western Australia’s Container Deposit Scheme,  WARRRL welcomes VenuesWest’s commitment to embedding Containers for Change across its major sporting and entertainment precincts, making it easier for visitors to return accepted containers and keep them from landfill.  

I applaud the strong example that VenuesWest is setting for all WA organisations, as its actions demonstrate how businesses can make Containers for Change part of their day-to-day operations, while creating positive outcomes for community, charities and social enterprises.