Penarth embraces sustainability with a place to donate things you own but don't need and borrow things you need but don't own.

A new Library of Things will launch in Penarth town centre in April, giving local residents the opportunity to borrow a range of household items such as a drill, sewing machine or board game.

Items will be available to borrow at low cost, with the opportunity to pay in volunteering time or "Tempo time credits"

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'Benthyg Penarth' will be based at The Clockyard, a new community hub based within Rowley's the Jewellers on Glebe Street, with the additional benefit of an online borrowing platform allowing people to browse, reserve and pay for items online.

An electric cargo bike will also enable deliveries and collections around the community and provide active travel opportunities for volunteers.

Local residents are invited to complete an online survey to indicate what kinds of items they'd like to

donate and borrow, with a donation drive planned for later this month.

An information-sharing Zoom event will also be held at some point in March for potential volunteers, with a wide range of roles on offer to suit different people, anyone can sign up to attend the event online.

The project is being run by the local environmental group Gwyrddio Penarth Greening (GPG), with funding from Natural Resources Wales.

Benthyg Cymru - a social enterprise set up to develop a network of Libraries of Things around Wales, which is also currently working on projects to establish Libraries of Things in Swansea, Pembrokeshire and Monmouthshire - are supporting the project.

Libraries of Things were cited in the recent Welsh government 'Beyond Recycling' strategy as facilities that will help to grow the circular economy in Wales and achieve zero waste targets by 2050.

Benthyg is a welsh word meaning borrow or lend.

Gideon Calder, GPG chair said:

"Libraries of Things are a brilliant way of promoting sustainability at the local level - by sharing resources, reducing waste, and encouraging use of our local high street.

"GPG's public consultations have shown strong support for having one in Penarth. It'll be great to get started."

Becky Harford, co-founder of Benthyg Cymru said:

"The idea for the Library of Things first came about when I had just moved into a new house with a big garden but couldn't afford to buy a lawnmower.

"I didn't know anyone locally to borrow one and didn't drive to be able to borrow one from friends further away. I came across the idea of tool libraries and when I realised there wasn't one in my area, decided to set one up myself.

"The benefits of libraries of things are endless – providing opportunities to share precious resources and create connections with people in your community."