How it works

Through a local Library of Things, sharing can work for everyone. Whether you want to borrow things you’ll only use every now and then, or try before you buy, or want to try something new, then becoming a member of Share Bristol can help you. Once you are a member, you can borrow from any Share Bristol Library of Things – as long as you bring the Thing back to the same place you picked it up from!

Have a look at our Library of Things catalogue to see our full range of things you could borrow. For the details of reserving, borrowing and returning see our members agreement (it’s not hideous legal clauses!).

Reserve

In order to reserve Things you need to first join the library. This includes setting up an account on our website and paying for an annual membership.

Once you are a member, head to our library catalogue where you can:

search for a specific Thing, or browse for inspiration
read about the Thing to check it’s right for you
check availability of the Things you want to borrow – for popular items remember to plan and reserve in advance
reserve the Thing for a week of your choice

Borrow

Visit your selected Library of Things to collect your reserved Thing(s). If it is your first borrow you will be asked to provide proof of your current address.
Check the Thing(s) over and ensure you’ve picked up all the parts and accessories (if any).
Consider whether you need any PPE (personal protective equipment) – we have gloves, face shields, goggles and so on for you to borrow, and dust masks for you to buy.
We really like to see our Things in action and share this with the Share Bristol community (including on social media and online), so if you’re happy with this please do send us photos and videos of the Things in action, or before and after photos!

Return

If you’re planning on bringing a Thing back early, please amend the date on your booking so the Thing becomes available for someone else to borrow sooner, by selecting the option to choose a new return date.
If there is something wrong with the Thing, please let us know promptly so we can plan its repair before its next reservation and see if we can offer you a replacement.
On or before the return date, please return the Thing(s). You’ll be sent an email reminder the day before it is due back. If you do need to keep the Thing(s) for a bit longer and no-one else has reserved it then you can extend your borrowing for another week.
Please ensure you return all parts and accessories ready for the next borrower, and make sure you return it to the Library of Things you picked it up from. Otherwise you may need to pay a late or replacement fee.
Please do give feedback – how you got on, if there’s anything we should know about the Thing, if anything didn’t go according to plan. That way we can learn and fix anything before the next borrow.