Meet the team
A small team that dreams big!
A huge ‘hello’ from the team at A Good Thing
Cathy Benwell - Co-Founder
Hello! I’m Cathy.
I co-founded A Good Thing with my husband Richard in 2020, and am loving watching it grow and thrive. In July 2024, I was included on the Digital Leaders Net Zero 50 List, which was a huge honour. In partnership with CGI, the List recognises individuals from diverse sectors across the UK who are leading the charge towards a sustainable future, providing practical solutions and inspiration for net-zero strategies.
The idea for A Good Thing had been in our minds for a long time, but the concept really came into focus when Richard set up a software start-up and I started doing lots of work with a brilliant charity called Home-Start. We suddenly saw what great things can be achieved when a business gives things away to a local charity in need.
I’ve always been a bit of an eco nut. I was that person setting up recycling bins in office kitchens and washing up plastic cups for reuse, at a time when most people didn’t care less. Years before it was cool, I was bringing my own bag when going shopping – and getting some very disparaging looks as a result!
I hate waste of any sort. A Good Thing is such a simple but effective concept, and I love how easy it is to explain it to people. It’s been so exciting to make our idea come to life, and most of all I love the people I’m meeting as a result.
I speak French and Spanish, and in my spare time I love reading, skiing and family bike rides. Not necessarily at the same time! I am also a keen runner.
Please get in touch if you’d like to find out more about A Good Thing or get involved with what we’re doing. I’d love to hear from you!
Richard Benwell - Co-Founder
Hi, I’m Richard.
I co-founded A Good Thing with my wife Cathy. I love using technology to solve problems and I head up the technical side of A Good Thing. I’m also passionate about designing products that are simple and easy to use, and that is central to our aim with A Good Thing.
My background is in technology and entrepreneurship. Ten years ago I started a software business called SquaredUp which today serves enterprise customers worldwide. It was important to me to grow a business that didn’t just prioritise products and profits, but also people and planet, and that includes making a positive impact on the communities we work in. Donating leftover IT equipment directly to local charities was an initiative that was successful at SquaredUp, and with A Good Thing we hope to scale that to all businesses who want to do more for their local communities and help reduce waste.
We’re hoping there are no limits to how far we can go with A Good Thing, and we’re building a modern software platform to help us get there. If you’d like to get involved or learn more about how we’re doing that, I’d love to hear from you.
Eco Champion Volunteers
Help us to grow A Good Thing in your local area! Come on board as a local eco champion. Help us to get more businesses and charities to sign up to send less to landfill and more to a good cause. A Good Thing is rolling out across the UK and is in need of local eco champions to help it to grow. You'll be using your connections (friends, family, colleagues, neighbours...), as well as your insights into the local area, to help us to build the numbers of businesses and charities signing up in your part of the UK. You might do this through door-knocking (popping into shops and local businesses in person) or through brilliant online networking (using social media platforms, for example).
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