Recycling Week: Libraries Edition
Recycling Week (14-20 September 2026) is a celebration of recycling across the nation - showing that everyone’s recycling efforts are worth it!
Libraries have always been at the forefront of efforts to recycle and reuse items, encouraging book lovers to borrow books, read them, return them and repeat, making reading accessible and affordable for everyone.
Each year our libraries throughout Blaenau Gwent lend over 80,000 books to people of all ages, which includes physical books as well as books on CD, eBooks and eAudio books.
But our recycling and reusing efforts don’t stop at just books, we have also developed a ‘library of things’ to help our communities gain access to other assets:
Sports Libraries have been developed with our Aneurin Leisure Trust Sports Development team to provide local residents with the opportunity to borrow free sports and fitness equipment for up to 3 weeks. Items include a variety of sports balls, cricket sets, boccia and tennis rackets as well as dumbbells, resistance bands and swimming sets. For more info visit our Sports Libraries page here.
World Book Day Costumes are also available to borrow, free of charge, thanks to our partnership with Families First. We have a wide variety of fancy dress costumes for children of all ages at Tredegar Library, which can be delivered to any of our library branches throughout Blaenau Gwent.
Little Seed Libraries are available throughout the Spring and Summer at all our branches, offering library members the opportunity to get free seeds with each book loan to start their own vegetable or herb garden at home. This initiative has been developed with the Blaenau Gwent Gwent Food Partnership Network.
Community Kit Room donation bins are also available at each of our libraries, enabling people to donate their pre-loved sports clothing and footwear, to to support members of the community within Blaenau Gwent with their health, sport and fitness journey ensuring that having the appropriate kit isn’t a barrier to participation. The Community Kit Room is a free service that’s been developed by our Sports Development team and can be accessed at each of three sports centres in Abertillery, Ebbw Vale and Tredegar. For more information, visit our Community Kit Room page here.
Litter Picking Hubs are available at all our libraries, allowing residents to borrow litter picking kits from us for FREE in order to help them keep their communities litter free. This initiative has been developed in partnership with Keep Wales Tidy and Blaenau Gwent Council.
In addition to these free loan schemes, our libraries are also embracing other green initiatives:
We have switched to ABS library cards for our members, which are made from recycled PVC and are 100% recyclable.
We are an active member of the Books4U scheme, which provides FREE access to books across public libraries in South Wales, which not only helps us to improve our offer but it also reduces waste.
We work with Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council to actively distribute recycling bags and battery sacks to local residents.
We use some of our discarded book stock for art and craft activities, giving old and damaged books new life as pieces of upcycled art.
For more information on our library services, or to become a member at your local library, visit our website www.blaenaugwentlibraries.co.uk
