TonbridgeRepairCafe

Community repair events are offering repairs, building repair skills and boosting community cohesion in towns up and down the country. Their success demonstrates that there is a large public demand for repair services and skills, but so much more is required to meet this need.

Organisations across the UK are working towards a future where repair is a thriving sector of our economy. This needs products to be designed to be durable and easily repairable by default and in which manufacturers actively support their products for as long as possible. A future where products are given a second life through reuse, where repair is the easiest option for everyone when something breaks, and recycling is saved for the very end of a product’s useful life.

Government action is needed to achieve this by:

• Making repair more affordable, through tax reductions and repair vouchers.
  
• Expanding the UK’s right to repair regulations to cover all consumer products, strengthen design standards and remove barriers to repair for everyone. 
  
• Introducing a repair index to help the public choose more repairable and durable products. 
  
• Introducing requirements and targets for reuse and repair to be prioritised over recycling and providing investment to make this a reality. This should be a key part of amended extended producer responsibility rules.
  
• Supporting a new generation of repairers through repair training, accreditation and apprenticeships.