Barnstaple Repair Café draws record visitors as volunteers save items from landfill

Barnstaple Town Council has reported a record number of visitors at the first Repair Café of 2026.

The event, held on Saturday 17 January at Barnstaple Library, saw volunteers help residents fix items from vacuum cleaners and wheelchairs to record players and teddy bears. Organisers said visitor numbers exceeded those at previous cafés, which are run by One Barnstaple with support from the council, Libraries Unlimited and Earth Action North Devon.

“Repair Café sessions bring the community together while also reducing waste,” a council spokesperson told the North Devon Gazette.

The cafés run on the third Saturday of each month from 10am to 1pm, offering free repairs on small electricals, clothing, soft furnishings, toys and jewellery. 

Donations are welcomed to help cover materials and refreshments.

Among those attending was local resident Mel Walker, who brought a teddy bear she has owned for more than 50 years.

“Lani not only sewed his head back on, but she also restored his paw pads and knitted him a cardigan,” Ms Walker said.

Repair Cafés are part of a global movement aimed at tackling waste and promoting sustainability. 

Barnstaple Town Council Communications Officer, Esther Gittoes, said; “It was great to chat to Mel and see first hand the wonderful job that our Repair Café fixers do. Mel has had her bear since she was a baby and has had it in her possession for over 50 years. Ted had lost his head and had a few amateur fixes over the years. It wasn’t until Mel’s friend mentioned the Repair Café that she brought her bear to Lani”.

Ella McCann Community Developer for One Barnstaple said, “Barnstaple Repair Café is a

great initiative that brings the community together. The success of this month’s repair café

is down to the wonderful group of volunteers and supporters who believe in the Café’s

ethos”.

According to research supported by the UK‑based National Lottery Community Fund, 60 per cent of adults in the UK have thrown away everyday household appliances such as toasters and hairdryers in the last year, many of which could have been repaired instead.

Research from the Open Repair Alliance and The Restart Project shows that Repair Cafés across the UK have expanded rapidly, with more than 600 cafés operating nationwide, a one‑third increase since early 2023. 

These events are estimated to have repaired nearly 55,000 items in a single year, avoiding around 150 tonnes of waste and about 1,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions.

At a global level, data from the Repair Café International Foundation highlights the scale of the wider movement: in 2019, around 420,000 kilos of waste were prevented worldwide through community repair efforts, roughly equivalent to the weight of a fully loaded Boeing 747, and this activity helped avoid up to 10 million kilos of CO₂ emissions.

Local organisers said the cafés not only help extend the life of cherished possessions but also build community links and encourage people to learn new skills.

Barnstaple Repair Café continues on the third Saturday of every month.

Full 2026 dates are available on the Barnstaple Town Council website.