By Town Clerk Laura Fidler, Cllr Tricia Austin and Phil Shotton
Ramsgate Town Council’s Climate Change Task Group, led by Cllr Tricia Austin, is spearheading several initiatives aimed at both reducing carbon emissions and saving residents money. Among these initiatives are the Ramsgate Repair Café, community food growing projects, and the installation of a water fountain on Ramsgate Main Sands.
Ramsgate Repair Café
The Ramsgate Repair Café, hosted at Radford House in Effingham Street, operates on the second Sunday morning of every month. Upcoming dates include Sunday 11th August and Sunday 8th September, from 11am to 1pm.
Residents are encouraged to bring their broken items to the café, where a team of skilled volunteers helps residents to repair their items while everyone enjoys a cup of tea. The volunteers specialize in a variety of repairs, including carpentry, needlework, soldering and bike repairs.
While electrical items are currently beyond their scope, the team successfully repairs clothes, furniture, wooden objects, jewellery, and bikes. If an item is deemed repairable but beyond the volunteers’ expertise, they provide referrals to local repair shops, many of which have generously donated equipment and supplies.
Cllr Austin said: “It’s been really heartening to see the Repair Café establish itself so quickly, with a lovely supportive atmosphere amongst the team. We’re really enjoying being able to help residents with all sorts of repairs.
“Some of our fixers are multi-skilled and will turn their hands to any sort of problem, so do bring in your repairs and we’ll be happy to have a go, and to show you how to repair your own items next time if we can.”
Community Food Growing
The Task Group has initiated a community food-growing project, starting with herb planters outside Radford House, freely available to residents. This new project is already making a positive impact, with plans to expand by distributing free fruit trees to residents with front gardens, encouraging them to share the produce with their neighbours and friends.
The group is grateful to those residents who have already identified potential food growing sites around Ramsgate. They will be happy to hear from anyone who has other ideas to support this project in future.
Water Fountain on Main Sands
Inspired by the #RiseUpCleanUp community group in Margate, Cllr Austin and Phil Shotton, from the Ramsgate Society, successfully bid for funding from SeaChangers, a charity focused on reducing coastal plastic pollution. The funding facilitated the installation of a water fountain on Ramsgate Main Sands, promoting the use of refillable water bottles and reducing plastic waste. The fountain, installed last week, will be operational following health and safety checks, with a formal unveiling planned soon. Additionally, Southern Water is working with Thanet District Council to sponsor more fountains along Ramsgate seafront and other coastal areas, further enhancing the initiative’s impact.
Phil said: “The Ramsgate Society is delighted to have been able to partner with Ramsgate Town Council, Thanet District Council and SeaChangers to get this water fountain installed on the Main Sands. It’s a simple but effective way to do three things – help tackle climate change, help reduce beach litter and save money for residents and visitors – a real win-win-win! We’re very grateful for the support of RTC, TDC and SeaChangers for this project.“
A spinoff of the Repair Café is our new Town Shed, operating on the first and third Monday of the month, 11am – 2pm, at Radford House. The Shed, which offers facilities for woodwork, metalwork and craft projects, is looking for permanent premises somewhere in Ramsgate. If you know of any likely spaces, please contact Cllr Austin (details below).
For more information on these initiatives or to volunteer your skills at Ramsgate’s Repair Café, please contact Cllr Tricia Austin at [email protected].
Thank you for your support and participation in making Ramsgate a greener, more sustainable community.
