Repair Café Foyle Join the Big Fix
The BIG FIX 2023!
The BIG FIX is back, and this time it’s even bigger and better!
Running throughout the whole of May, The BIG FIX has one aim – to fix and breathe new life into as many broken things as possible.
The event, coordinated by Recycle Devon, sees skilled menders fix broken items such as small household electricals, textiles, bikes and much more to give them a new lease of life.
Due to its huge success, The BIG FIX event is now nationwide across the British Isles for the third time, with 51 Repair Cafés from Wales, Scotland, N. Ireland and England already registered to take part.
Repair Cafe Foyle is supporting The BIG FIX 2023 by holding an event on 27th May in the Great Hall at Ulster University Magee Campus. Visitors are welcome to drop in with broken household items for our skilled menders to fix. The event will run from 10am – 1pm and free parking is available on site for the day. There is a lift that takes you to the Great Hall.
Repair Cafe Foyle Coordinator, Caroline McGuinness-Brooks says “ The Big Fix coincides with our 1st Birthday, we’re really excited to welcome our past host venues to celebrate with us and hope to see lots of new faces & volunteers on the day too. Community repair is a celebration!”
The BIG FIX hopes to help people save money, not only by repairing old items but also passing on skills to fix their own items in the future.
Repair Cafés are increasing in popularity as people are becoming more budget and environmentally conscious. They are organised and run by volunteers who offer their time and skills to help mend broken items and keep them in use for longer. Volunteers also help greet visitors, supply tea and coffee and restock supplies of cakes and other tasty treats.
Last year, 50 Repair Cafés and 580 volunteers took part in The BIG FIX, mending 1,100 items and saving 31 tonnes CO2e. Over 830 cakes and biscuits were served alongside 1,000 cups of tea and coffee!
The BIG FIX 2023 is taking place across May to enable as many Repair Cafés as possible to take part.
Jennifer Cooper, Devon County Council’s Re-use Project Officer, said:
Repair Cafés are wonderful places where communities can come together to share skills and have a catch-up, whilst helping their pockets and the planet at the same time. This year we’re hoping to again increase the number of Repair Cafés taking part and items being fixed, whilst also recording why items are unable to be repaired. All data will be shared with the Repair Cafés as well as help us to report on the impact of the event.
Repair Cafe Foyle works in collaboration with Zero Waste North West, Life Cycles & The Fashion & Textile Design Centre and are honoured to have been invited by Ulster Universities Community Engagement Manager, Claire Mulrone, to celebrate our first birthday with ‘The Big Fix”. In the last year the group has held 10 events and repaired over 200 items for free!
You can find out more about the Repair Cafe Foyle at https://www.facebook.com/RepairCafeFoyle or via the Zero Waste North West: https://zerowastenw.org/
