Inside a Neighbourhood Tool Library

Our tool library lives in a converted garage at the end of Linden Row, and it opens on Tuesday and Saturday mornings. The sign over the door says The Borrowed Hour, because that's what most people need: an hour with the right tool, then back on the shelf.

I used to own a drill I used twice a year. I now borrow one, along with a ladder, a tile cutter, a wet-and-dry vacuum and a very serious pair of loppers. My shed has never been so empty, and I've never been so well equipped.

Where the tools came from

The first sixty items arrived in a single weekend. We asked the street, and the street opened its garages. People gave us the second drill they'd bought on impulse, the saw that belonged to a late uncle, the ladder with one rung they'd been meaning to fix. A local hardware shop donated a few boxes of fixings and a good workbench.

Every tool gets a label, a number and a short card that says what it does and what to be careful of. A volunteer checks each one before it goes on the shelf. Anything sharp is cleaned, anything electric is inspected by our resident electrician, and anything dodgy is retired with thanks.

How loans work

You sign up once, with a name and an address on the street or the next one over. You borrow for a few days at a time. There's a ledger, an old-fashioned paper one, that Hester Quill keeps with great pride. She says screens go wrong and paper doesn't, and I've never been able to argue.

There's no fee. A coin jar sits by the door and people put in what they like. We've had donations of biscuits, batteries and, once, a tin of excellent paint.

Late returns happen. We send a friendly nudge. The nudge, we've found, works better than anything stricter.

What goes wrong

Tools break. A drill bit snaps, a blade gets dull, and sometimes a borrower returns something in two pieces and apologises so sincerely it's hard to say a word. We keep a repair shelf, and the café that meets next door will often take a look.

What matters is that the tool comes back to the people who need it next. We don't punish accidents. We fix them, and add a note to the card so the next person knows.

What it changed

Something happens when you share tools. You start talking to your neighbours. Someone borrows a tile cutter and you find out they're re-doing their bathroom. Someone else offers advice, and by Saturday three people are standing in a stranger's hallway with a spirit level.

Here are a few things we've noticed:

• People ask for help more

• Fewer things go to the tip

• The garage is the friendliest room on the street

• Children want to know what everything is for

A shelf of tools turns out to be a shelf of conversations. If you've got a garage and a few neighbours, you could start one next month. We'll lend you a drill.