The Repair Café in Hassocks relocating in January 2023

By Juliet Merrifield, HKD Transition

From 28th January, the Repair Café will be relocating to the Age Concern Centre on Dale Avenue. Along with Hassocks Village Market, we’ll be part of a new village hub and we hope to see lots of people there.

You can bring items for repair between 9.30-11.30 am. We can usually complete simpler repairs that morning by 12.30pm, and more complex tasks can be taken home by our repairers for pick up later. No need to book, but if you’re not sure we can work on something, do email or message us on Facebook.

The Repair Café’s second year was very successful, with many more items brought for repair: a grand total of 246 assorted hedge trimmers, toasters, radios, clocks, vacuum cleaners and jackets, shirts and coats needing zips and buttons. There were also some more unusual items successfully repaired: a 60-year-old doll missing an arm, a raclette grill, a violin, a 70-year-old leather holdall, a small wooden box with a ‘magic’ closure and a toy rabbit that had been chewed by a puppy.

Thanks to generous donations we covered all our costs and ended the year with a small surplus. Our amazing and talented repairers achieved an 80% success rate – not everything is repairable but we can have a go and more often than not we can get things fixed. We can also offer advice on items that you may be able to fix yourself or refer you to professionals who can help with things that we can’t.

We’re always keen to recruit new repairers to keep up with rising demand so if you’re good at fixing things, whether electrical items, sharpening tools, sewing zips or other more specialist items please do contact us at repaircafe@hkdtransition.org.uk.

Energy saving tips from Community Energy Fair at Adastra Hall, Hassocks

Community Energy Fair (organised by HKD Transition) was well-attended in Hassocks in October. These tips were shared there.

Ten easy things that cost nothing and save a bit

1.     Avoid standby – switch off at the plug items like DVD players, TVs, phone chargers, printers that are not in constant use.  The Centre for Sustainable Energy calculates that ‘a typical household could save between £50 and £90 a year just by remembering to turn off appliances left on standby’

2.     Turn off lights in rooms not being used

3.     Turn down radiators in rooms not being used

4.     Keep your central heating thermostat around 18-21 degrees.  Turn off heating at night and when you’re out

5.     Keep your fridge around 3-5 degrees and defrost regularly (the ice makes it work harder to keep things cool)

6.     Wash laundry at 30 degrees except for bedding and towels (the NHS advises washing these at 60 degrees)

7.     Fill the kettle with only the amount of water you need to use

8.     Have showers rather than a bath and keep them short

9.     Close curtains at night

10.  Set up an outside clothesline or indoor drying rack (put this in a room that’s not being used, near an open window, and close the door to the rest of the house)

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Low cost DIY energy saving that also keeps you warm

Look for cold air coming into the house and fill the gaps:

o   Draught-proof windows and doors with foam strips or brush strips – but remember your home needs some ventilation so don’t seal kitchen or bathroom windows. Read about options here - Read about options here: https://energysavingtrust.org.uk/advice/draught-proofing/  

o   Make your own draught excluder for outside doors https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqPcDkAJVbM

o   Fit a cover to your letterbox

o   Buy a chimney balloon to stop losing warm air up the chimney

o   If you have a condensing combi boiler you can safely turn down the flow temperature to save gas (instructions …)

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Hassocks Life recycling guru Colin McFarlin

Low cost energy saving measures

o   Replace old lightbulbs with LED

o   If you have single glazed windows add another layer – plastic film is cheap and available

o   If you have cold floors carpet or rugs can help, and often are available cheaply from charity shops and Freegle

o   Get a warmer duvet for winter

o   Put reflective panels behind radiators

o   Consider using an electric room heater if you only need to heat one room at a time

o   If you have a hot water tank make sure it has a jacket on to keep hot water hot

o   Get a slow cooker and/or a microwave, which are cheaper to use than an oven

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 Energy saving actions that cost more but also save more

ü  Insulate loft, walls, floors if you can.  A quarter of household heat is lost through poorly insulated lofts and roofs and a third through uninsulated walls

ü  Double or triple glaze all windows

ü  When your boiler needs replacing consider options like a heat pump that save energy long-term. Good review of options here: https://energysavingtrust.org.uk/energy-at-home/heating-your-home/

ü  When you need to replace failing appliances look for the most energy efficient models (e.g. A***); these may cost more upfront but will save you money over their lifetime

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Help and advice for energy saving

Financial support – National programmes

Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme - If anyone in your household is receiving benefits your energy company is obliged to install energy efficiency measures.  Contact your energy supplier and ask what help they can provide through the Energy Company Obligation (ECO).

Warm Home Discount Scheme - £140 off energy bill for those on low income or in receipt of the Guarantee Credit element of Pension Credit. www.gov.uk/the-warm-home-discount-scheme

Flexible Home Improvement Loan (FHIL): a loan for homeowners aged 60+ to improve the warmth, comfort, condition, safety or security of their homes. See www.fhil.org/

Financial support – Local programmes

Warmer Homes programme available across West Sussex with the aim to improve the energy efficiency of low income and low energy performance homes. More information here:  https://www.warmerhomes.org.uk/about

Energy advice

Find Ways to save energy in your home – an online government resource to help you identify home improvements that can save energy and keep you warm: https://www.gov.uk/improve-energy-efficiency

Useful websites:

Energy Saving Trust - https://energysavingtrust.org.uk/energy-at-home/

Low Carbon West Oxford - https://www.lowcarbonwestoxford.org.uk/energy-use-at-home/

West Sussex County Council, Solar Together group buying scheme for solar panels and batteries - https://solartogether.co.uk/westsussex/home

Great Big Green Week 2021

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Beginning on Saturday 18th September, Great Big Green Week is a national celebration of local action on climate change and HKD Transition have planned lots of activities

• Saturday 18th : Slowing the flow: our community response to flooding in Hassocks – click the picture for information on guided walks.

• Monday 20th : Imagine a Brighter Future for our Community - Hurst rethink event as part of Hurst festival

• Wednesday 22nd : The Air We Breathe, see page 24 of September’s Hassocks Life magazine

• Thursday 24th: Whole house energy retrofit event joint with Fairer World Lindfield - details will be updated on the Fairer World Lindfield Facebook page

• Saturday 25th: Hassocks Repair café opens, a fitting finale for HKD Transition’s Great Big Green Week, see here.
Find out more at www.greatbiggreenweek.com

The return of the Repair Café in Hassocks

After almost a year of operating remotely, the Repair Café Hassocks will be opening face-to-face at last, at the United Reformed Church on Keymer Road.

The opening will be a fitting finale for HKD Transition’s Great Big Green Week, part of a national week of events celebrating action on climate change. The first date is Saturday 25 September from 10am - 12.30pm and, from then, the shop will be open on the fourth Saturday, the same day as Hassocks Market, except in December and August.

You’ll be able to bring your items for repair, talk to the volunteer repairers and have a cup of tea or coffee while they look at what’s needed. The idea of repair cafés was born in Amsterdam in 2007 and swiftly spread across the world. The premise is simple enough: instead of throwing away your rusty kettle, faulty vacuum cleaner or knackered lamp, you take it to a meeting place, where knowledgeable volunteers help you mend the item, understand what’s gone wrong, and even show you how to mend it.

Our amazing repair volunteers have responded to almost 200 repair requests in the last 9 months. Some repairs are simple enough to do at the café, others will be taken home by repairers, to be collected when ready. We can’t repair everything, but we can point you towards professional repairers who may be able to help if we can’t. From 1st September you will be able to book a slot for the opening day on our website or Facebook page. Even if you don’t have something to be repaired, or have already had a repair done remotely, do come along and say hello. www.facebook.com/repaircafehassocks

Community flood teams proposed for Hassocks

Following the surface flooding in November in Hassocks, local group, HKD Transition propose the formation of community flood teams. Each group will focus on key areas of the village which are prone to surface flooding, particularly during periods of leaf fall that may clog the drains as was the case in November.

The Drain Busters teams could help with leaf clearing in Autumn, to complement council efforts. They could also co-ordinate storage (and shared awareness) of brushes, rakes and sandbags, liaising with the fire brigade and West Sussex Council for any drain clearing or pumping issues. It is hoped that each ‘team’ will have its own WhatsApp group or a telephone tree (or whatever communication tool works for its volunteers) enabling the team to respond quickly if needed. HKD Transition will put the team members in touch with one another so each group can decide how best to operate.

In the meantime, the debris dams built by our volunteers in Lag Wood this year to slow the flow of flood water are holding up really well as the image demonstrates. If you would like to be involved in either project please email herring@hkdtransition.org.uk

Please visit www.hkdtransition.org.uk for more information about HKD Transition.

Repair Café comes to Hassocks

By Juliet Merrifield, HKD Transition

What can you do with a dress with a broken zip? A lamp with a frayed lead? A stool with a wobbly leg? A toy truck whose wheel has come off? A teddy bear with stuffing coming out? Bring it to the Repair Café Hassocks! Our team of volunteer repairers have had a lifetime of fixing things and now are willing to help fix your things too.

Barring changes in Covid-19 guidelines, Repair Café Hassocks will start on 28th November, then every month on Market Day (fourth Saturday) except December and August. We’ll be at the URC church at 23 Keymer Rd from 10am-1pm, ready to have a go at fixing things.

It may be that you don’t have a sewing machine, or arthritic fingers make it hard to do sewing that once was easy. Or maybe your household items are waiting for a new part or someone to glue it together. We can’t promise to fix everything, but we’ll try our best.

You can book items for repair via the Facebook page: www.facebook.com/repaircafehassocks.

With current Covid-19 restrictions we won’t be operating the ‘café’ part but you can drop off items for repair and pick them up later that morning.

Questions? Email us at: repaircafe@hkdtransition.org.uk.

Flash flooding in Hassocks high street

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On Saturday 26th October, Hassocks was affected by flooding. In Keymer Road, water flooded shops near Spitalford Bridge. Kelly Harding of Bella June comments, “the entire community came together on that wet and cold evening - how incredible! There were people clearing the drains, the fire brigade pumping, people helping to clear the shops... just such a wonderful community. We are endlessly grateful for the support and help we received and continue to receive. Totally overwhelmed by the love of the Hassocks community. I wouldn’t want my shop anywhere else despite the flood risk!” Kelly is looking for nearby temporary premises which Bella June might use for about a week while the ruined floor is replaced.

Hayley Elphick of Reflex@42 recalls, “it was a terrible Saturday night to be honest, coming after everything that’s already happened this year. Thankfully, we now have sandbags, some angel of a man turned up at midnight with them and I cried all over the poor man!”

Juliet Merrifield, of HKD Transition, explains how the flooding happened: “surface water poured downhill to the lowest point. The drains were blocked with leaves blown off by the strong winds.” To help slow the flow of rainwater, Juliet suggests, “we can reduce the runoff from hard surfaces by planting trees, harvesting water from roofs into water butts and making sure driveways are permeable.” HKD Transition have been working to reduce pressure on local flooding pinpoints such as Spitalford Bridge. Margaret Ford of HKD Transition commented, “the flooding in the Parklands Road area might have been a great deal worse.” The Floods and SuDS group is a partnership between HKD Transition and Hassocks Community Organisation, with a lot of support from the Ouse and Adur Rivers Trust. The group have initiated various local flood interventions, such as the Rain Garden in Adastra Park. A couple of weeks ago, a group of twenty-five volunteers, working in bubbles of six and following social-distancing rules, were out mending dams in Lag Wood.

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The owner of Lag Wood, Paul Roberts, provided chestnut stakes for the group and helped conduct a recent survey to monitor the condition of each dam. Alistair Whitby, of HKD Transition, explains: “these dams are essentially a couple of stakes in the riverbed with debris behind it. They’re designed to be leaky and are beneficial for biodiversity.” The water that forms behind the debris dams is beneficial for wildlife like macro-invertebrates, damselflies, dragonflies, coots and kingfishers. During high rainfall events, these dams can hold back a significant amount of water. Alistair adds, “it’s a natural way of making sure the water’s not running down into the village all at once. The key thing is to slow up the speed with which water hits a barrier. Spitalford Bridge can only hold so much water so as soon as the water is reaching it at a greater speed, the water starts backing up.”

Alistair comments, “climate change is exacerbating these high rainfall events and any way of holding the water back and releasing it more slowly is what we’re trying to do.” HKD is looking for more volunteers. To get involved, see www.hkdtransition.org.uk/flooding

Lockdown Lounge Talks by HKD Transition

Local environmental group HKD Transition have put together a range of talks taking place during the Coronavirus lockdown, that anyone can join in on from their home. They are designed to ‘inform and entertain you during the pandemic when we (HKD) are not able to hold all the activities we had planned’.

The first is on Wednesday (22nd April, 7pm) when Laurie Jackson will talk about climate change and wildlife.

Click images below to go to Event Brite to register for each event.

Climate change and wildlife - 22nd April 2020, 7pm

Recycling during the pandemic - 6th May, 7pm

Herbs and your health - 29th April 2020, 7pm