Letchworth Garden Shed has opened its doors to the community, with residents able to borrow from its 'library of things'.

It is designed for people who want to complete a project - whether that be a big garden makeover, home decoration, a new hobby, or baking - but lack the required tools for it.

Rather than spending money on materials that would only be used once, they can now simply borrow the items they need from the Garden Shed and return them when their project is finished.

More than 250 items are available to borrow, including ladders, planers, angle grinders, cake tins, bread makers, baby care equipment, lawnmowers, and pet crates.

They have been donated by local residents and organisations, with Wickes providing a number of electrical tools and equipment including a Karcher jet washer.

There is a £10 annual fee to access the 'library of things', and a surcharge of between £1 and £8 per week for every item borrowed, depending on its value.

Settle, the housing association, is providing free membership for its residents. They should receive a code via email or letter.

Andy McLean, founder of Letchworth Garden Shed, said: “We are overwhelmed with the support for the Garden Shed from businesses like Wickes and are so grateful for the products we have received.

"There’s clearly a need for it in Letchworth as already we have had 150 people sign up and we would encourage anyone interested to pop in and see us.

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"We have a strong sustainability goal and have a number of volunteers on hand to fix broken items, much like the Repair Shop but on a more practical level rather than emotional! ”.

Daniel Allen, chair of North Herts District Council, said: “We have been really lucky to have companies like Wickes who made donations to us and supplied the items for this Library of Things.

"In Letchworth, we have a lot of social housing so this shop will really help people get items such as garden equipment, tools, and kitchen equipment which they can keep using again and again and then bring back to the shop for the rest of the community to use as well!’