THE SHARE Shed, the world’s first travelling library of things, will start running a weekly service to Ivybridge and Kingsbridge this autumn thanks to a windfall grant of nearly £20,000 from South Hams Council.

With more than 350 useful items - from drills, projector, dehydrators and garden tools to gazebos, tents, carpet cleaners, dehumidifiers, hedge trimmers and even a chocolate fountain - the Share Shed helps people borrow things they only need occasionally at a low cost.

Members join for a donation and can reserve items online or on the day. Borrowing items saves people money and space, and helps to reduce waste.

The initiative, run by the Network of Wellbeing, has been granted £19,600.84 from the council’s Climate Infrastructure Fund.

Project manager, Mirella Ferraz, said: “we’re really excited to be extending our services and making it convenient for even more people to borrow things instead of buying them.

“This is great for the pocket, for the community and for the planet, especially now when so many are struggling with the increase of the cost of living”.

The Share Shed went mobile in 2020 using a converted van is as a ‘shed on wheels.’ It currently offers a weekly service in Totnes, including Bridgetown and Dartington, Buckfastleigh, Ashburton and South Brent.

More 1,700 people have used the service, saving up to 3,200 purchases worth more than £200,000.

Cllr Tom Holway, the district council’s executive member for climate change and biodiversity, hailed the Share Shed a “fantastic service”.

“Sharing household equipment will help to reduce the amount of materials used and the carbon emissions generated when producing the vast quantities of household equipment that we buy,” he added.

“Much of this equipment is only ever used once a year and then put on a shelf or in a shed. I also think that this service could not have started at a better time, for as well as helping the environment, it gives people access to equipment without them having to buy it, which is just what people need right now because the cost of everything is going up at an alarming rate.”

Besides the expansion to Ivybridge and Kingsbridge, the council’s grant will also enable the Share Shed to offer a range of sharing and repairing events, as well as pop-up sales of pre-loved tools and appliances.

This is designed to help local people save money while reducing pollution and waste, and is a wonderful way for the local community to connect with each other, said Mirella.

For more information visit www.shareshed.org.uk.