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In this issue of your Rubbish and Recycling newsletter, you can find out more on:
- Garden waste collection cost going down from July
- How to recycle rechargeable electrical items
- Repair café at Spencers Wood Village Hall
 Garden waste collection cost going down from July
From 1 July, you only need to pay £60 to have your grass clippings, leaves and, weeds collected fortnightly from the kerbside until the end of March 2023.
Using our garden waste collection service is convenient for anyone with a garden. It is also great for the environment as your garden waste will be turned into compost for growing other plants.
If you are new to the scheme, a brown wheeled bin with an orange sticker showing you have paid for the current collection year will be delivered to you within 15 working days after a payment is made. If you already have a bin, the sticker will be posted to you within 10 working days, following your payment.
Please note your bin will only be emptied if you are displaying the current year's sticker. Also make sure the sticker faces the kerbside so that it's visible to our crew.
Our garden waste collection service runs from 1 April to 31 March the following year. The cost for a 12-month service this year (1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024) is £80. The cost will be reduced if you sign up later in the year. Visit our website to find out more.
 Did you know?
Can I recycle electrical items with rechargeable batteries inside?
Yes. Many rechargeable electrical items have batteries hidden in them that can’t be removed (such as electric toothbrushes, smart watches), but it doesn't mean they can't be recycled.
Take them to re3 recycling centres, because the whole products can be recycled with other electrical items.
How about loose batteries?
If you have any loose batteries (like lithium-ion ‘button’ batteries, standard barrel-type batteries like AAs or AAAs), don't bin them because they can cause fires. Take them to the battery collection points in major supermarkets, electrical stores or re3 recycling centres.
Find your nearest recycling points using the online Recycling Locator tool.
 Don't toss it! Fix it!
Have you visited a repair café?
At a repair café, you can find expert volunteers with different skills in mending household items like toys, bicycles, gardening tools and even clothes.
Started in the Netherlands, repair cafés are now a worldwide movement to encourage fixing broken items to reduce waste and help the environment. At present, there are over 2,700 repair cafés around the world, with close to 50,000 items repaired per month.
In our borough, we are grateful to have a group of volunteers running a repair café at Spencers Wood Village Hall every month.
Spencers Wood Village Hall repair café
The Spencers Wood Village Hall repair café celebrated its first anniversary just a few weeks ago.
Over the past year, it has received more than 300 visitors and the volunteers have looked at 450 broken or damaged items including vacuum cleaners, garden tools, lamps, CD/DVD players, toys and clothes.
We talked to some volunteers and residents at the last event. They are all very positive and supportive of the initiative:
- "I like doing repairs and don't want to see things thrown away. The repair cafe is a good community project." - from Jeff who is a volunteer living in Spencers Wood.
- "It's useful to people who don't have the skills to mend things." - from Hilary who brought her lawn mower for repair from Swallowfield.
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It's the third time I am here. My expertise is sharpening tools." - from Giles who also volunteers at other repair cafés in nearby areas.
 More than repairs
The Spencers Wood Village Hall repair café offers something more than repairs.
While waiting for your item being fixed, you can enjoy some coffee, tea and savoury snacks at the café, also run by volunteers. You can also hunt for used books, CDs and DVDs that you like in the exchange corner.
Besides, a dedicated area has newly been set up to sell nearly-new items donated by residents. Looked after by a young volunteer Joanna, it has now become a regular feature of the repair café.
All money from café, exchange and sale of donated items goes to the village hall.
Looking ahead......
Billie Bachra, the organiser of the Spencers Wood Village Hall repair café, hopes to support more local charities through this community initiative in the days to come.
She's also calling for more volunteers to come forward and play a part in this meaningful project. If you want to set up a repair café in your own area, contact her for help and advice by emailing admin@spencerswoodvillagehall.co.uk.
 Plan your visit
If you want to visit Spencers Wood Village Hall repair café, here are the details:
Date: first Sunday of every month (the next one will be on 2 July)
Time: 10am to 1pm
No booking is needed, as it's run on a first come, first served basis. All repairs are free but donations are welcome to support the village hall.
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