The Mayor of London and all of the city’s boroughs came together to create the collaborative initiative in 2020. It aims to help Londoners waste less and reuse, repair and recycle more.
Ali Moore, the head of communications and behaviour change for ReLondon said, that this event helped to forward the idea of the ‘circular economy’, a cornerstone of the partnership’s goals.
“The principle of the circular economy is to keep materials and items in circulation for as long as possible, to maintain the highest possible value. If you repair something, it means that you don’t buy something new, you don’t have to mine the materials to make that new thing, and you just keep it going for longer.”
Clara Buckens repaired clothes at the workshop, using a sewing machine and needle and thread.
A learning opportunity
This was the first time that an expert volunteer was on hand at a Repair Week workshop to mend clothes.
Clara Buckens helped with sewing, darning, fixing ripped seams and hems and making small changes to clothing.
She said, “One of the big issues with repair and just generally caring for the things that we have is a lack of skills in general and also a lack of convenient and cost-effective options.
So, we’re doing this both as a way to share skills and to show people how to fix the clothing they have and to help them extend the life of their items… so that they can feel more empowered.”
Islington Climate Centre hosted the event, it is a venue for community groups to discuss environmental issues.
Estimates say that London’s municipal recycling rate was 33% from 2021-22, according to data from the London Assembly. Mayor Sadiq Khan has acknowledged that rates are not rising quickly enough to meet the target of 45% by 2030.
ReLondon plan to hold more events like this in the future, and have in the past for Repair Week, which is held annually. These include events about sustainable fashion and about eating a plant-based diet.
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HeadlineLondoners have their gadgets and clothes repaired for free in Islington
Short HeadlineLondoners offered free repairs in Islington
StandfirstVolunteer repairer says there is "a lack of convenient and cost-effective options" for fixing items in everyday life.
Volunteer experts offered free repairs at the Islington Fixers’ Repair Party on Saturday, tackling gadgets, clothes and laptops.
The Mayor of London and all of the city’s boroughs came together to create the collaborative initiative in 2020. It aims to help Londoners waste less and reuse, repair and recycle more.
Ali Moore, the head of communications and behaviour change for ReLondon said, that this event helped to forward the idea of the ‘circular economy’, a cornerstone of the partnership’s goals.
“The principle of the circular economy is to keep materials and items in circulation for as long as possible, to maintain the highest possible value. If you repair something, it means that you don’t buy something new, you don’t have to mine the materials to make that new thing, and you just keep it going for longer.”
Clara Buckens repaired clothes at the workshop, using a sewing machine and needle and thread.
A learning opportunity
This was the first time that an expert volunteer was on hand at a Repair Week workshop to mend clothes.
Clara Buckens helped with sewing, darning, fixing ripped seams and hems and making small changes to clothing.
She said, “One of the big issues with repair and just generally caring for the things that we have is a lack of skills in general and also a lack of convenient and cost-effective options.
So, we’re doing this both as a way to share skills and to show people how to fix the clothing they have and to help them extend the life of their items… so that they can feel more empowered.”
Islington Climate Centre hosted the event, it is a venue for community groups to discuss environmental issues.
Estimates say that London’s municipal recycling rate was 33% from 2021-22, according to data from the London Assembly. Mayor Sadiq Khan has acknowledged that rates are not rising quickly enough to meet the target of 45% by 2030.
ReLondon plan to hold more events like this in the future, and have in the past for Repair Week, which is held annually. These include events about sustainable fashion and about eating a plant-based diet.
