by Gill Terry
RagTag has received funding from Highland Council under its Reuse and Repair Fund to run a Skills Cafe in Broadford. The purpose of this will be to upskill individuals in a range of subjects, with the aim, of course, of keeping material out of landfill. Associated with this is the aim to help people who are financially challenged by teaching them how to save money by repairing and recycling clothes and other articles, by exploring small-scale vegetable growing, and by using what would be food waste to make simple meals including soups and stews. We will be able to teach PAT testing to anyone who wishes to learn to PAT test, including perhaps other charities who might then be able to accept and then sell electrical goods instead of turning them away or sending to landfill. We will have our own PAT testing equipment which we will be able to hire out to third sector groups.
The Skills Cafe will run one day a week, usually a Thursday, at RagTag. Attendance will be free of charge but places will be limited according to the activity, and booking will be necessary. This is not a drop-in, and differs from our other public craft events by being strictly about teaching skills aligned with the Reuse Repair ethic – skills which attenders can then take away and use or pass on to others.
RagTag has some of these skills in house, examples being how to use a sewing machine, how to mend clothes, how to make new clothes from scratch using recycled fabrics, traditional skills such as knitting and crochet. Our new staff member is experienced in vegetable growing, outdoor crafts and cooking. We have funding to pay sessional tutors to teach subjects we can’t provide ourselves. Ideas so far are upholstery, bicycle repair, spinning and weaving using waste textiles, furniture repair. Feel free to suggest others!
I would love to get together with others who are active in similar areas, so please get in touch by emailing me at hello@ragtagskye.org.
