You may have come across the 3 Rs of sustainability – Reduce, Reuse, Recycle – or even the 7 Rs (or even 9 Rs) of sustainability (see our previous blog on this).

We are examining these in a little more detail – here is the fifth in the pyramid – Repair.

Once upon a time, most of the things we purchased could be easily repaired. Today, a lot of the things we buy are either more complex or are built in a way that they are harder to repair. But, a lot of the stuff we throw away could easily be repaired. Repairing things would save us money and reduce the amount of energy and materials used in making a new one.

Some things we can learn the skills of repair ourselves eg sowing on buttons, but some things need a bit of special knowledge or tools.

Around the country, repair groups have been springing up where you can take along items for skilled volunteers to repair. There are already repair groups in Leeds and it would be wonderful if we could set one up in Alwoodley. If you are interested in this idea then do please contact us via the comment section below.