Our next repair café is on Saturday 14th December. See the foot of this page for upcoming dates in 2025.
Repair Cafés are free meeting places and they’re all about repairing things (together). On clothes, furniture, small electrical appliances, bicycles, crockery, appliances, toys, etcetera.
Visitors bring a broken item from home. Together with volunteer specialists they start making their repairs at the Repair Café. It’s an ongoing learning process for everyone.
By bringing items to our September repair café, local residents will saved themselves very nearly a combined total of £2,500! That figure represents the total amount of money residents would have had to pay for a new replacement item – PLUS it meant that their repaired item would not then go to landfill!
If you intend coming along, please email details of what needs fixing to ringwoodrepaircafeuk@gmail.com and we’ll endeavour to ensure there’s someone appropriately skilled there to assist you.
Nothing to repair? You’re still welcome!
Even if you have nothing to repair, why not come along and enjoy a cup of tea or coffee, a piece of cake and have a natter? Or maybe you can lend a hand with someone else’s repair job?
How does it work?
On arrival you are asked to check in at our reception desk to register your name and item requiring a repair. You will be asked to complete some simple paperwork with one of our volunteers. This registration is important as we are required to record the repairs we have undertaken for statistical purposes. You will also be asked about consent for your photograph to be taken.
Inevitably there do need to be some operational guidelines that we will operate the cafe within. These will be drawn to your attention. When you register to attend an event you will be considered to have accepted our rules which will also be prominently displayed in the venue for all to read.
Your personal data will not be used for any other purpose than recording your visit. We’ll ask for your email address (there’s no obligation to give it) as we intend to send reminder notices before each café in case people have something that needs fixing.
Once registration has been completed you will either be directed to an appropriate repairer or be asked to wait in the seating area until one becomes available.
Your repairer will discuss the fault with you and then attempt to diagnose it and a remedy with you. You are encouraged to sit with the repairer whilst your repair is being undertaken. You can discuss the fault symptoms and even assist the repairer.
Do I have to pay?
No. Ringwood Repair Cafe is run entirely by volunteers and there is no charge for undertaking your repair or for the refreshments (and cake!) available to visitors.
However you may wish to show your appreciation by giving a donation. It costs £75 to run each café event (venue hire, catering, consumables). A contactless card reader will be available, but good old cash is also very welcome!
Donations also support the purchase of additional tools for our volunteer repairers, and enable us to keep the monthly sessions for the benefit of all.
There is absolutely no obligation to make a donation.
What items can be repaired?
Small items that you can carry into the venue, such as:
- jewellery and accessories
- clothes (darning, hemming, buttons)
- documents and books (re-binding, repairing frayed edges)
- wooden items (chairs)
- pedal bikes & scooters
- electrical items (vacuum cleaners, bedside lamps, toasters etc.)
- computers
If you’re uncertain whether we can help, just email ringwoodrepaircafeuk@gmail.com with some details.
We operate a strict ‘one item for repair per customer’ policy. If you have multiple items, please determine which you’d like to get repaired first, and the book the other(s) for the following café event.
What can’t we repair?
For safety and to avoid competing with local businesses, we don’t repair:
- Microwaves
- Welding
- Safety equipment
- Domestic white goods, eg washing machine, cooker.
Alas, we’re also unable to undertake sharpening of small garden tools (shears, knives etc.) but we do know a lovely lady who can help you and we’ll give you her contact details!
When Forest Forge visited the repair café …
A creative writer from Forest Forge Theatre Company‘s creative writing group spent the morning with us on Saturday 12th October. Jane Rothwell was introduced to the team and encouraged to involve herself with all aspects of the operation and to then write up her impression of the repair café.
Upcoming events
The repair café runs on the second Saturday monthly, except in August when we take a summer break. Therefore our dates until December 2025 are:
| 14 December 2024 | 12 April | 13 September |
| 11 January 2025 | 10 May | 11 October |
| 8 February | 14 June | 8 November 2025 |
| 8 March | 12 July | 13 December 2025 |
Follow us on Facebook & Instagram
- Facebook: Ringwood Repair Café UK
- On Instagram, our ID is @ringwoodrepaircafe
Page last updated: 20th November 2024