Release date: 13 May 2026
Throughout May, The Big Fix has been shining a spotlight on repair cafés across the county, raising awareness of the environmental value of repairing belongings and helping people keep items in use for longer.
Throwing something away doesn’t just discard the object itself, it also wastes the land, energy, and raw materials that were needed to make it. Extending a product’s life through repair helps protect these limited natural resources.
West Sussex County Council is supporting this year’s Big Fix by sharing details of local repair café sessions, promoting the environmental and financial benefits of repair, and hosting an online space where cafés and residents can exchange advice, ideas, and practical know how for fixing everyday items.
Originally launched by Recycle Devon in 2019, The Big Fix began as a nationwide pushback against throwaway culture, encouraging people to bring broken household items to their local repair cafés. The campaign quickly grew, in 2020, volunteers across the UK repaired more than 2,500 items in a single day. By May 2024, that number rose to 3,177 repairs completed during the month, including 132 in West Sussex across four cafés.
In May 2025, the campaign continued to thrive, with 2,358 items repaired nationally over the month. West Sussex volunteers fixed 154 of those items, welcomed 155 visitors, and supported repairs ranging from lawnmowers and jewellery to clocks and textiles across five cafés.
The county council is proud to support this campaign as reducing waste, encouraging reuse, and increasing recycling all support the key priority in our Council Plan of a sustainable economy that adapts to climate change. The Big Fix helps residents cut waste, save money, and learn valuable skills that empower them to repair items themselves in the future.
Residents can find information about repair cafés in West Sussex, along with practical repair tips, at: www.westsussex.gov.uk/thebigfix
To locate your nearest repair café, visit the Community Climate Map: yourvoice.westsussex.gov.uk/community-climate-action-map
