Following their recent re-opening after lockdown, Abergavenny Repair Café are on the lookout for new volunteers to assist them at their pop-up events.

Abergavenny Repair Café takes place on the third Saturday of each month between 11am and 2pm at the Abergavenny Community Centre, and hosted their first event since March 2020 on Saturday 19th June.

As part of their work, the café takes in all matter of household items that need repairing, including electrical items, mechanical repairs, clothing and textile, home furniture and even bicycles.

Like many local businesses and events the café was forced to close down due to the Covid pandemic and the subsequent lockdowns, and are now looking for additional volunteers to help with running and assisting events.

The café was originally started up in 2019 by Abergavenny resident Mary-Ann Swanson who contacted Repair Café Wales to help set up a café in the town.

Repair Café Wales is a Community Interest Company that facilitates pop-up events held on regular dates where members of the local community can get broken household items repaired for free.

With the support of Monmouthshire County Council who provided funding, the café was successfully launched in Abergavenny in May 2019.

Mary-Ann Swanson said: “At the Repair Cafe Abergavenny, we are a group of volunteers who want to help extend the useful life of household items. Our aims are: waste reduction, skill sharing and community spirit.”

“Our Cafe could not operate without the volunteers who give their time and share their skills to help the community in a friendly, relaxed atmosphere. Although we may not be able to repair every item, our motto is ‘We’ll give it a go’.”

Volunteers with fixing skills are particularly needed, but there is also a need at the café for individuals that could help sustain their events through different skills such as marketing, social media, customer engagement and much more.

The event is solely run by volunteers and all repairs are free of charge with those bringing in items to be repaired even advised to stay and watch the repair work undertaken in order to learn new skills and harness community resilience.

The café currently has around 20 volunteers including a paramedic as well as Mary’s husband who formerly worked as a mechanical engineer.

The café has also received support from local charity Tools for Self-Reliance in Crickhowell whose staff have volunteered at the café as well as sourcing extra tools for the events in Abergavenny.

Under usual circumstances the café previously operated on a casual drop-in basis with refreshments available, but due to Covid guidelines and restrictions on numbers those wishing to bring items to the café now have to book appointments with refreshments unavailable for the time being.

Mary is especially keen to see young people get involved with volunteering at the café, saying: “I would advise any young person in the area who is interested in repairing items to come down and join us in volunteering.

“There is a great deal of new skills you can learn from being part of a group such as ours. We are a friendly bunch and would gladly welcome any new faces who would be willing to lend their support during these challenging times.”

The next Repair Café session is due to take place on Saturday, July 17. Anyone wishing to bring in items are advised to book appointments in advance by emailing [email protected]