welcome to Share Bedford
– a library of things

helping our community thrive • one thing at a time
we are open every wednesday 12-12 and saturday 10-12. our home is on the 2nd floor of Bedford central library. we welcome visitors, even if you just want to come in for a chat
who are we – we are a small group of people in Bedford who wanted to make a difference to the local community by reducing waste, and reducing the need to buy new stuff! read more about us here
what is a library of things – well, it’s a library but instead of books we loan out things! ladders, cat boxes, carpet cleaners, hedge trimmers, tables – hopefully we’ve got something you need to borrow so we can save you the cost of buying it new. take a look at our library here
did you know….
- The first uk library of things was set up in London in 2014 inspired by the toronto tool library
- There are now almost 100 in the UK
- Items can range from DIY tools, household appliances, camping gear, garden equipment, and kitchen items
- The most popular items to loan out are carpet cleaners, drills and jet washes
- Local libraries of things ensure the full use of an item (rather than it just being used a few times over many years)
- By loaning out donated items libraries can reduce waste and carbon emissions
- Our current consumer habits impact on the planet is unsustainable – we need to find alternative solutions
- The average productive time of a drill in its entire lifetime is about 12-13 minutes
- in 2019 SHARE Frome was able to save 199 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions, 254 tonnes of raw material use and 22 tonnes of manufacturing waste by sharing, re-using and repairing items!