Bicester Green Unites Community to Combat Overconsumption
To help us mark Secondhand September, Peter Salisbury, chair of trustees at Bicester Green, reveals how a community of volunteers has come together to tackle the crisis of overconsumption and give old items a new lease of life.
Peter says: “Bicester Green has been going since 2013, helping Bicester to become more planet-friendly by cutting waste and encouraging the circular economy. That may sound very fancy, but it just means we’re trying to make sure that everything we buy gets as much use as possible before moving on to the recycling bins. We are delighted to be part of Secondhand September because re-using secondhand stuff is right at the heart of what we do.
“We are a dedicated army of volunteers (around 80 at the moment) who have a great time pitching in together to share our skills, whether that’s making things out of reclaimed wood, repairing donated bikes and electrical items, or helping customers in the shop and Library of Things. We do all this across our two sites, one at Garth Park and the other our shop on Sheep Street.”
A record player saved!
A Womble Welcome.
Discover the Repair Café
Peter says: “We’re always looking for ways to reach out to people in ways which help them, and recently we’ve started running something called a Repair Café which we put on every six weeks or so, alternating between Saturdays and Wednesdays.”
Peter continues: “If you have a broken electrical item gathering dust at home, you don’t need to throw it away, you can bring it along to one of these Repair Cafés at our shop at 16 Sheep Street. There you’ll meet some of our talented team of volunteers who can take a look, investigate the problem and, with a bit of luck, get your item working again.
“You can sit right beside one of the friendly repairers and watch the process step by step. Not only might your item be saved, but you could also pick up some handy tips and knowledge for the future.
“We offer this service completely free of charge, because it all helps to reduce waste, extend the life of everyday items and support a more sustainable, circular economy here in Bicester, which is what Bicester Green is all about.”
Did you know?
You can find out the next Repair Café dates by keeping an eye on the Bicester Green website or the notices in the shop and on their Facebook page.
A community built around repairs
The success of an organisation like Bicester Green is down to the wider community as well as the team running it.
Peter explains: “It’s one really wonderful way that Bicester works as a community, with volunteers from all walks of life as well as the knowledge in the room from our customers.”
Some notable recent repairs have included a robot vacuum cleaner, brought back to life thanks to a customer who stepped in to translate error messages from Mandarin, and a bedside lamp illustrated with pictures of the Wombles, which prompted a spontaneous rendition of the song: “Making good use of the things that we find, things that the everyday folks leave behind.”
For Peter, these are examples of the camaraderie you’ll experience when you visit a Repair Café.
Even a hoover is no match.
A treasured Womble lamp.
Leatherworkers at work.
Find a Repair Café near you
Bicester Green’s next Repair Café is on Wednesday, 1 October. If you can’t get to Bicester, don’t worry. There are similar second-hand shops and repair cafes all around Oxfordshire. Find your local repair café here: Repair Café Oxfordshire.
In Oxford, Rose Hill and Iffley Low Carbon run regular swap shops where you can pass on things you no longer need and pick up useful items, as well as bi-monthly Repair Cafés where volunteers help fix broken household items. Both are a great way to cut waste, save money and connect with your community.