REPAIR Cafe Malvern Hills is celebrating after being awarded £10,000 from the National Lottery.

The money will help support the expansion of the repair cafe network across the West Midlands.

Founded by Jan and Chris Dyer, the repair cafe has opened every month since December 2012 and attracts between 55 and 70 people at each session.

The volunteer team has grown to almost 40 and includes multi-skilled practical repairers, a sewing team, front-of-house and catering personnel.

The funding is from the National Lottery Community Fund, which distributes money raised by National Lottery players for good causes and is the largest community funder in the UK.

It will enable Repair Cafe Malvern Hills to enlarge the repair cafe network across Herefordshire and Worcestershire.

It will also help community groups to open five more repair cafes across the West Midlands.

Resource and financial support and a training programme for all volunteers in the management, operation and administration of a repair cafe will be offered.

Chair Jan Dyer says, ‘We’re delighted that the National Lottery Community Fund has continued to recognize the value of the repair cafe model and has again supported this worthwhile, and increasingly important, community initiative.

"More and more people are realizing that we should consider the repair and re-use of all our possessions before we throw them away and add to the, often unnecessary, volume of waste being sent to landfill.

"The previous grant in 2015 supported six new repair cafes by providing start-up funding and advice, repairer expertise and tools and equipment until each felt confident to go it alone.

"However, we remain a supportive network offering each other assistance when needed.

"Repair Cafe West Midlands has identical aims and we are already working with community groups planning to open repair cafes in Leominster, Stourbridge and Ledbury.

"We also intend to extend and advance the ten-lesson Repair module for Key Stage 2 pupils initiated in 2015 and make a consequential contribution to repair education in the West Midlands."