Community Repair
How community workshops refurbishing bikes and helping local communities.
Across Europe and beyond, a powerful movement is growing — one that tackles waste, builds community, and keeps bicycles rolling long after they might otherwise be discarded.
At the heart of this shift are community bicycle workshops — grassroots spaces where people learn to repair, maintain and refurbish bikes, extending their useful lives and reducing the environmental impacts of throw-away culture.
These workshops are not just about tools and wrenches. They are gathering places that strengthen communities, teach practical skills, champion reusable parts, and transform what it means to own and care for a bicycle.
What Are Community Bike Workshops?
Community bike workshops (also called bike kitchens or DIY bike cooperatives) are usually non-profit or volunteer-run spaces where:
People can repair their own bicycles with access to tools, stands, and parts
Volunteers and staff teach bike maintenance skills to everyone, including those who have never turned a wrench before
Donated bikes and used parts are reused, refurbished or repurposed instead of being discarded
Bikes are often sold at low cost or given to people who might not otherwise have access to reliable transport
These workshops disrupt the “use and dispose” mentality by making repair a central, supported part of bicycle culture — reducing waste and building resilience within communities.
Examples of Community Bike Workshops Around Europe
Here are some community bicycle workshops and projects from different countries that are actively keeping bikes on the road longer and empowering people with repair skills:
Cyklokuchyňa – Košice, Slovakia
A community repair space where anyone can come and fix their bike with tools and advice, learn new skills, and support reuse of parts and whole bikes.
https://www.cke.sk/en
Cardiff Cycle Workshop (Wales, UK)
A well-established non-profit workshop that repairs and recycles donated bikes, offers training courses, and provides affordable, refurbished bicycles to the community. Over its history, the workshop has rescued and restored thousands of bikes, keeping them out of waste streams and making cycling more accessible for people across Cardiff.
https://www.cardiffcycleworkshop.org.uk/
Donate a bike, take a course, or volunteer to help keep bikes rolling.
Carlavelorep – Salzburg, Austria
A social bicycle workshop run by Caritas that repairs donated bikes and uses them for parts or to build bikes for sale. Their work supports job creation and reuse.
https://circulareconomy.europa.eu/platform/en/good-practices/carlavelorep-social-bicycle-workshop
CyCLO – Brussels, Belgium
A social economy organisation offering repairs, used bicycles, maintenance courses, and DIY options with a focus on reuse and cycling culture.
https://www.cyclo.org/en
Community Cycleworks – London, UK
A workshop that teaches repair skills, runs “Build a Bike” programmes using donated bikes, and helps people become self-sufficient riders.
https://communitycycleworks.co.uk/
The Chichester Bike Project – Chichester, UK
A local hub that refurbishes donated bikes to gift to those in need or sell affordably, offers workshops for all ages, and supports community education.
https://chichesterbikeproject.com/
Hastings Bike Project – Hastings, UK
A community project running repair and maintenance workshops and rehoming second-hand bikes to keep them out of waste streams.
https://hastingsbikeproject.org/
Biclorama – Chalabre, France
A grassroots association focused on bike repair, reuse, and community projects that reduce waste and improve access to bikes for all ages.
https://www.biclorama.fr/en/projects/
