Top five things you didn’t know about Benthyg Cymru

When I joined the Benthyg team in May, I thought I knew the set up pretty well. You borrow instead of buying, save money, and help the environment. I’d been loving their work for years, but since being on the inside, I’ve learnt so much more. So I thought I’d share... Here are my top 5 things you didn’t know about Benthyg Cymru.  

1. You can borrow a tractor!  

I’d seen the DIY and cleaning tools, but I didn’t appreciate the range of items you can borrow across Wales. A paddleboard in Bethesda, wheelchairs in Newcastle Emlyn, wedding decorations in Newport, a guitar in Llandovery, a microscope in Llanfyllin, and yes… a small tractor in Carmarthenshire!

2. Every Library of Things is unique  

If you couldn’t tell from the first point, libraries of things are set up to suit the community they’re in. That means they have items that suit their community, they open when it suits their community, and they are run by volunteers and local organisations in their community. So, it’s not surprising they are all unique.

3. “We can 3D print that for you”  

Made up of 37 members across Wales, the Benthyg network has been set up to help the Libraries of Things connect, share and learn with each other. I witnessed this most recently when a network member had an issue with some of their giant Connect 4 counters going missing. Not a problem, another member jumped in and offered to print replacement counters with their 3D printer! Now that’s a supportive network in action.

4. Lockers are coming.

We want borrowing to be as easy as it is to pop out for a loaf of bread. The next step for this is out-of-hours lockers. You book online, get your code, borrow, use, return. Whatever time suits you. Our site at Cardiff and Wrexham have lockers already, and more are coming… watch this space!

5. Wales rocking it again

Wales is leading the world at borrowing! Wales has more Libraries of Things per person than any other nation, and they are all over the country, with one in each Senedd constituency. And we can’t wait to keep growing and making borrowing the easy and normal choice.  

So there you go. And if you knew all that already, you are a Benthyg super fan! Gold star for you! ⭐  

‍