A NEW hub bringing together eco-friendly initiatives has found a home in Rugby.
The Rugby Eco Hub has secured a space at Age UK’s Claremont Centre and funding from Rugby Borough Council for the next year.
The initiative – a collaboration between eco-groups Transition Town Rugby and Rugby Repair Cafe – will host a repair cafe, a tool-sharing Library of Things, and food-growing initiatives.
it will also offer energy saving advice, workshops, events and demonstrations to help Rugbeians reduce their carbon footprints and save money while protecting themselves against an ‘uncertain future’.
The Eco Hub could open as early as May, initially for a couple of days a week, with plans to increase opening times by the end of the year.
The hub held an open day attended by residents, businesses, shop-owners, designers, voluntary sector workers and Rugby Borough Councillors Jerry Roodhouse, Neil Sandison and Isabelle McKenzie.
Coun Sandison said: “I’m very glad that they’ve got this off the ground. The commitment of people who turned up today is a stepping stone to a more sustainable community.
“Collaboration and cooperation could go a very long way.”
TTR Secretary Alex Becker, a council officer and ex-teacher from Eastlands, gave a speech to attendees at the open day, touching on his worries about extreme temperature trends, and the benefits of bringing different groups focused on sustainability together ‘to start making a bit more noise’.
He added: “The space is all about growing your own food, workshops and demonstrations, second-hand stuff.
“One of the big things we want to do is the Library of Things – we have funding to do that. Let’s not all own our own strimmer – let’s just have a couple of strimmers.
“In difficult times, we have always seen how communities coming together to help each other is what sees us through, and this is exactly what Rugby Eco Hub aims to achieve.”
Martin Bryant, who runs repair cafes in Rugby and Coventry, said: “We’d really like to have more. I would love Rugby to have five or six repair cafes in their own little areas.
“People can sit with one of our regular repairers, be mentored by them and become a repairer.”
Visit www.transitiontownrugby.org for more information.
