We’re delighted to announce that The Rebuild Site has been awarded £19,000 from The National Lottery Community Fund to expand our community repair and reuse activities over the next two years.

The funding will allow us to create a new part-time Community Repair & Reuse Officer role, helping us deliver more workshops, repair cafés, school visits and community sessions across Carlisle and the surrounding area.

Since opening in 2021, Rebuild has helped hundreds of community projects by providing free materials, supported more than 1,000 tool loans through our Tool Library, and worked with local schools, charities and community groups to make reuse more accessible. This new funding will help us build on that success and reach even more people.

The new programme will focus on giving people practical opportunities to learn repair and maintenance skills, reuse materials, reduce waste and take positive environmental action in their community. Activities will include repair cafés, hands-on workshops and sessions with schools and community groups.

We know there is growing interest in repair and reuse, but opportunities to learn these skills can be difficult to find. Through this project, we hope to make practical sustainability more accessible, helping people save money, build confidence and connect with others while reducing waste.

The project will also create new opportunities for volunteers to get involved, share their skills and support activities within the community.

Emma Porter, CEO & Founder of The Rebuild Site, said:

“We’re incredibly grateful to The National Lottery Community Fund and to National Lottery players for making this possible. We see every day how much people value practical skills, affordable materials and opportunities to take positive action for the environment. This funding will help us expand those opportunities and build a stronger culture of repair and reuse across our community.”

We’re now preparing to recruit for the new Community Repair & Reuse Officer role, with details to be announced shortly. The job advert will appear here:- Work with us – The Rebuild Site

Thank you to everyone who has supported Rebuild so far. We’re excited to see what we can achieve together over the next two years.