Hackney Council marks Zero Waste Week with launch of Repair Café programme

Hackney is delighted to announce the launch of its 2026/27 Repair Café programme, aimed at supporting community-led initiatives that promote sustainability, reduce waste, and foster community resilience.

Repair Cafés are community spaces where residents can bring broken household items such as electricals, textiles, and bikes to be repaired by skilled volunteers, free of charge.

Grants of £1,500 have been awarded to a broad range of local organisations, including Community Interest Companies (CICs), schools, and Tenants and Residents Associations, to set up and operate Repair Cafés between September and December 2026. Textiles Repair Café hosted by Community Closet Hackney hold their first Repair Café on Tuesday 29 September, then every two weeks until December. Threading Change will host a textile Repair Café on Saturday 3 October. Follow Greener Hackney or sign up to the Zero Waste newsletter to stay up to date with all upcoming Repair Café events.

The following seven community groups have been awarded grants:

• STIM CIC
• Colville Estate Tenants and Residents Association
• Community Closet CIC
• Threading Change CIC
• Limitless Hands CIC
• Morland and Blanchard Tenants and Residents Association
• St Paul and St Michael Primary School

Repair Cafés not only prevent waste and conserve resources but also offer numerous social and economic benefits by fostering community cohesion, sharing skills, and saving residents money.

The Hackney Repair Café Grant aligns with the council’s Circular Strategy and Action Plan, designed to reduce consumption-based emissions and enable active community participation. By supporting Repair Cafés, Hackney aims to create a repair-focused culture and support vulnerable and underrepresented communities within its diverse borough.

Krista Brown, founder of The Community Closet, said:

"We are absolutely delighted to have received this funding. What makes this project particularly special is that it originated through our 'journey of participation' model. The facilitator first came to CoHub as a parent attending one of our regular community activities, before sharing her own idea and passion with us.

“Thanks to this grant, she now has the opportunity to pilot her first community-led Repair Café workshops, building her confidence, skills and professional network, with the ambition of developing the project into a sustainable social enterprise in the future.

“We are equally proud to be working alongside members of the Irish Traveller community to deliver what we believe will be the first Irish Traveller-led community workshops of their kind in our local area. Creating opportunities for all our communities to lead, share their skills and be recognised for their talents is at the heart of what CoCreate Hackney is about."

Cllr Jacob Cable, Cabinet Member for Climate, Clean Air, Energy and Transport, said:

"Repair Cafés are a brilliant example of how our communities are leading the way towards a more sustainable Hackney. As chair of the North London Waste Authority, I know that the 7 boroughs have much more to do to help divert valuable items from incineration with a bit of attention and skill. By helping residents repair everyday items instead of throwing them away, we're reducing waste, saving people money and bringing neighbours together to share valuable skills. We're proud to support local organisations that are making our circular economy a reality across the borough."