Greg Dickson from Forest Recycling Project has helped setup a new community re-use scheme

Tools can be quite costly, take up a lot of storage space, and are often not used very much. So you will be pleased to hear that we have just opened Walthamstow Tool Library (WTL)!

At our base on Priory Court Estate, we have more than 100 new and used tools available to loan, from lawn mowers and strimmers, to chisels and drills. We also have a variety of gardening books, for ideas and instruction on greening your own space.

You can save money, space, and the environment, by joining WTL. The idea came from William Morris Big Local (WMBL), who are always thinking of plans to improve outdoor spaces for the community, and has been made possible by Forest Recycling Project (FRP).

With the support of National Lottery funding and Waltham Forest Council, WTL is currently opening every Friday, 1pm-5pm. Gabriel Edwards, from WMBL, said: “Forest Recycling Project came forward to make it happen, and after the challenges and setbacks of this year, we’re really happy to finally see it open.”

The WTL team includes myself, Katja Benkel and Em Palmer from FRP, and we now alternate in running the library as session workers. So come and meet us on a Friday afternoon to find out more, or just to have a chat about your garden or DIY projects!

Green spaces are particularly important in cities like London, not only in terms of air quality, biodiversity and wildlife, but especially for our mental health – as many of us have painfully realised over the past few months.

Another WMBL project, in collaboration with Extinction Rebellion Waltham Forest’s families group, is the new community garden in Priory Court. This was a small piece of waste ground, which has now been transformed by volunteers. Money raised by WMBL at its Christmas fair last year was used to buy plants and soil, and volunteers of all shapes and sizes completed it using WTL loan tools.

For a small annual membership fee, of between £10 and £40 (depending on circumstances) you can book up to five tools online in advance and borrow for them for seven days. What project do you have in mind that could be made possible with a loan from Walthamstow Tool Library?

Walthamstow Tool Library is based at 2a Priory Court, Walthamstow E17 5SL, and is open Fridays 1pm-5pm. For more information: Call 07933 710 644 Email [email protected] Visit walthamstowtl.myturn.com/library

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