Two happy hoovers, a zippable pair of trousers, a bike fit to ride, garden tools ready to get out in the sun and a lot more. These were the results of the first Repair Café held in Peasedown St John in June.

Repair Cafés are events where people can bring broken goods and have them repaired by volunteers, and they are a movement that is truly international.

The first session had six volunteers at work from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. They used their skills in repairing electrical and electronic goods, clothes, bikes and tools at work to bring items back to life.

Shortly after opening time, there were people queuing up to register their goods for repair. But that was no problem, as those who had come with goods could sit and enjoy coffee and cake while they waited and had a good chat, often meeting up with old friends.

The result of this first PSJ Repair Cafe was that of 26 items brought in for repair, about two-thirds went home repaired. Sadly some items were beyond repair and would have to finish up at the recycling centre, but many more items that might have been destined for landfill are now back home and back in use.

Suli’s phone got smashed when it fell to the ground so she was about to replace it as it was a relatively cheap one. However, she learnt about the Repair Café, through her course at the University, and knew the importance of trying to repair or re-use rather than buying new.

Suli went online and bought the new parts and found a video on replacing her screen, but she didn’t have the tools to fit it, so she came to the Repair Café where it was fitted for her – learning and saving both money and the planet!

The Repair Café will be held on the fourth Saturday of every month (not August) at Peasedown Methodist Church, Bath Road – 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. So the next session will be Saturday, 27th July. No charge is made for repairs (although we do sometimes have to ask some people to get a replacement part for their item). There is an opportunity to give a donation to cover costs.

We could still do with more volunteers and if you could help, please contact: [email protected]. We want to see this community event growing and making sure that goods which still have a useful life ahead don’t get binned.

Ian Souter