Since it first opened its doors last spring, the unique ‘Borrow It’ borrowing library in Bath has now made over one hundred loans to almost fifty individuals in the community.
From carpet cleaners to hedge trimmers, sleeping bags to ice-cream makers, Borrow It has lent numerous items to local residents and community groups.
Borrow It: A Library of Things is open to all residents local to Bath. It is run by Time Bank Plus and funded by a grant from Bath & West Community Energy. There is no charge for borrowing items, though small donations are welcome.
Viv Talbot, Manager at Time Bank Plus explained: “In order to borrow items, people simply need to pop along to the office with some ID and register their details. They are then free to borrow anything they need for up to a week, or longer by arrangement.”
The concept & model for Borrow It came from the inspiring SHARE project, a similar initiative which is based in Frome. SHARE also kindly donated the first few items to the Borrow It collection.
Since then, local people have donated over 120 items to the scheme. The project has a growing number of registered members as more people find out about it.
“We have had really positive feedback from the local community, and members really appreciate having access to items that they might only use once or twice a year.
“The carpet cleaners have been really popular this winter, and we are expecting to receive more requests for lawn mowers and hedge trimmers as the weather warms up”, Project Coordinator, Rowan Wynne-Jones added.
Borrow It member, Richard benefitted from the scheme when his lawn mower stopped working, and he was also able to help his neighbour. He said: “The mower has been really useful. My neighbour’s mower broke the same week, so I was able to cut their grass at the same time.”
If you are interested in becoming a member of Borrow It, contact the Time Bank Office, on 01225 442813, by emailing: [email protected], or drop into the office at, 86 High Street, Twerton, Bath, BA2 1DE.
The opening hours are: Monday, Tuesday 10am – 4pm, and Wednesday 10am-7pm.
To view the latest catalogue of items available to borrow, as well as the project’s ‘wish-list’ of items, click here.
