Got stuff you don’t need any more? Or maybe there’s something you’re looking for.
Freegle is an online marketplace where everything changes hands free of charge.
- You choose your local area (in our case, the Penrith & Eden District Freegle)
- Post the item you’re offering or want
- And then hopefully someone nearby will be able to help.
Freegle helps to stop perfectly good items from going to waste or languishing in your drawers.
And, it’s a great way to get things you need for free, so you don’t need to buy them new, saving you money and helping the environment.
How it works
You can post stuff on the Freegle website or get the app for your phone. It’s available for Android and Apple in your usual app store.
- Freegle lets you OFFER something you have spare – or put out a WANTED for something you’d like
- Your post will be listed on the Penrith & Eden group for all local members to see
- Anyone interested will get in touch with you
- You choose who to give it to and arrange to meet up
- You mark the item as TAKEN (or RECEIVED)
- Everything must be free and legal
Volunteers look after the Penrith & Eden Freegle. They can help if you’re stuck and they also act as moderators. There’s guidance below on what you can and can’t post on Freegle.
Get started
Visit ilovefreegle.org or download the app to get started!
Follow on socials
Follow Penrith & Eden Freegle on Facebook & Twitter.
Events
There are Freegle Give & Take events periodically, where you can bring things you don’t want any more and take away whatever you want for free.
Once you are logged in on the app or website, you’ll see there’s also a community events listing. You can add your events to this. A round-up email goes out to group members, so it’s a good way to spread the word.
Guidance & tips
Before you post on the Penrith & Eden District Freegle, here are a few things you need to know:
- Keep it free, legal and appropriate for all ages.
- No loans, swaps or sales, please.
- Please use WANTED messages sparingly. People often ignore “desperate” or “urgent” messages.
- When offering, please wait for 24 hours before picking someone. That gives people who aren’t online all the time a chance to reply. You don’t have to give items to the first person to reply, and you might get another reply later that you prefer.
- Please don’t use WANTED or OFFER messages to ask for information – and no spam!
- Please use our news feed for general discussion, eg recommendations for painters, tilers, car mechanics, etc.
- Be nice when posting or replying- no swearing, insults and the like.
- If you intend to sell goods on, please indicate this both in WANTED ads and in any replies you send to OFFERs. Both of these are legitimate uses of Freegle, but you must let people know.
- Animals, pets and software are not allowed. Please consider contacting Eden Animal Rescue, the RSPCA or Animal Rescuers.
- No vouchers or coupons, paid for tickets only are allowed to be offered.
- Medicine rules mean that it is not allowed to post ANY medicines, even medicines that can be sold over the counter.
- Please don’t post to multiple groups at the same time. Wait a week to see if you get a response before posting to another group.
- Please wait for a week before offering or requesting an item again.
- If you are requesting items on behalf of a charity, please state the name of the charity. The group volunteers may ask confirm with the charity that you are a valid fund-raiser.
- Long-term requests are restricted to 3 months on the site and then 3 months off.
- Please read the main Freegle Terms, privacy page and disclaimer.
Handovers
Stay Safe: Please NEVER pay courier fees for delivery – it is a scam.
At the moment there is no dropping-off point, where items can be left to hand over. If you have any suggestions for where such a place might be, eg in Penrith, please let the Freegle moderators know.
Other ways to pass things on
If you have any furniture or white goods that you no longer want and there are no takers on Freegle, please consider other options, eg offering your item to a charity shop or a local furniture reuse organisation, who may be able to collect free of charge to sell on cheaply. Westmorland and Furness Council offer a bulky waste collection service for a fee.
If you still cannot get rid of an unwanted item, please leave it out in the general waste for kerbside recycling, take to one of the Recycling centres in Eden or at the Flusco or Kirkby Stephen Household Waste Recycling Centres.