October 2019
Traditional Woodland Skills Day
We will be there too, demonstrating tool sharpening
August 2019
Where will we be?
Our lovingly refurbished tools will be available to buy at: Our next events are . . . . 18/19th Oct, Traditional Woodland Skills Days, Penpont, nr Brecon, LD3 8EU 19th Oct, Big Swap, Monmouth [...]
July 2019
A surprise we didn’t expect . . .
Just click the picture . . James Zakayo
January 2019
Some events we have attended
Abergavenny Food Festival 2018 Where was this? Big Apple 2018
December 2018
Seasons greetings
Click the picture to read our latest news
Enter the Side Lifter !
https://youtu.be/I9SRxknfGGg
1,000th kit from Wales to Tanzania
Our 1,000th kit left recently, bound for this Tailors group in Kahama. Of course we have sent thousands more tool kits to Tanzania - via our workshop in Mwanza, but this was the 1,000th to [...]
October 2018
Latest from Tanzania
News from Tanzania After distributing treadle bases to women’s groups in Ukerewe Island, our Project Officer had a short time to chat with one of the project’s beneficiaries. This was what she had to say: [...]
July 2018
Great News from Tanzania
. . This is really a big push to the Government Initiative!
April 2018
Can you help to repair machines and improve lives?
Press Release Monday 30 April 2018 Can you help to repair machines and improve lives? Welsh charity, Tools for Self Reliance Cymru (TSFR Cymru) have been fixing old tools and sewing machines for 25 [...]
Success in Kiabakari
Click to read - A case study from Kiabakari PDF
December 2017
Tools news
Click the picture for news . . .
November 2017
Muhintiri Blacksmiths
Marco Deo first came to the notice of Tools For Self Reliance back in the 1990s, when he took part in a blacksmiths training programme, funded by our parent charity. He lives in Muhintiri, a [...]
Our latest . . .
Click to read . . .
November News
Click to read our latest news
July 2017
Our Thirty Three and Third
. See bottom of page for news of our Thirty Three and a Third Birthday Meanwhile a short history of those years for TFSR Cymru: . We started with a Party . . . 1996 [...]
January 2017
Our Review for the Year
Wishing all our friends, supporters and partners a very Happy New Year Click to read our Annual Review 2015-2016
Happy New Year to All
Wishing all our supporters a very productive new year from all of us here in Crickhowell.
November 2016
Giving Tuesday
Now that all that Black Friday nonsense is over, we have Giving Tuesday, which like it's big sister lasts all week. From this Monday, until next Sunday 4th December, PayPal will add £1 to all [...]
November News
Damian comes to Wales . Damian Changa came to see us in October; he is the SIDO regional manager for Mwanza, Tanzania. He managed to fit in a lot to his short visit; here he [...]
September 2016
History of the Green Gathering
. Click to read the fascinating history of the Green Gatherings. We have been attending ever since 1994 and have seen them grow and shrink and grow again.
August 2016
Hot news from Wales
Hot News from Wales - container arrives in Mwanza After three months at sea and on the road, plus a quick pit-stop at the port in Dar es Salaam, our eleventh container has arrived at [...]
Sue Gray
We are sad to report that Sue Gray died last week. She was a trustee of TFSR Cymru from 1999 to 2002, our Chair in 2002, and an active volunteer member for many years. She [...]
July 2016
Namagondo village – tools have arrived
The photos show Wahunzi Malegea’s new shelter – from rain and sun, plus some of the tools and equipment recently received from our Mwanza workshop which will help to make the groups more productive. This [...]
June 2016
Tanzania
Tanzania 2016 Tanzania 2012
May 2016
NAMAGONDO – Where’s that?
Arriving by boat at Ukerewe Island in Lake Victoria. Namagondo is about half an hour's drive from here. Namagondo is one of two villages chosen for our new project in Tanzania. In January this year [...]
Glyn Roberts
Glyn Roberts was the founder of Tools for Self Reliance and an inspiration to many people. Read Other Lives in the Guardian
January 2016
News HOT from Tanzania
News HOT from Tanzania This month we bring you reports direct from Tanzania written by people on the spot Here I am, handing over some cash to Jitegeme blacksmiths’ group outside Bukoba. They are receiving [...]
November 2015
Tools News for Bonfire Night
Click the picture to send us a Rocket, and enable us to help 800 people in Tanzania
August 2015
August News
Click to read our August News
July 2015
OPEN WORKSHOP AND TOOL SALE
On Saturday 15th July we are celebrating more than thirty three years of working in Crickhowell and helping improve other’s lives – both here and abroad. Our workshop will be open to all from 10 [...]
Mid summer news
Click the picture to read our latest news . . .
March 2015
March news
CLICK to see the Latest news from the Toolies
TFSR Cymru at Seed Swaps in 2015
CLICK for dates - TFSR CYMRU at Seed Swaps 2015
December 2014
New Year News
The latest news from Tanga
November 2014
November News
Lake Zone Exhibition John Mponeja of Tugeme Blacksmiths with his pedal grinder, which won first prize in the Mashinji Memorial Prize in 2005 sponsored by TFSR Cymru. This was at the last Zonal exhibition we [...]
TFSR Cymru
Please send your cheque to:- TFSR Cymru, Upper House Farm, Standard St, Crickhowell, Powys, NP8 1BZ Many Thanks!
October 2014
Our volunteers
TFSR Cymru Groups
Loading containers
Container No 7 away Container away June 2011
More volunteers
Assembly Volunteers 2009
News from Pangani
TUMAINI (EXPECTATION) TAILORING GROUP - News brought back by Bina and Terry Richter, following their recent visit to Pangani The group started in 2008 with 3 skilled tailors and 6 trainees. At that time we [...]
October News
. News from groups everywhere Kagera region Mr Elias Zacharia receiving tools from TFSR Cymru on behalf of the BUDAP - Bukoba Disabled Assistance project. for more see: www.budap.org . . . . . . [...]
Sad news
It is with great sadness that we have to announce that one of our Patrons, Dr. William Shija has died in London yesterday at the age of 67. He is survived by his wife and [...]
August 2014
Late August News
Container No 9 Arrives in Mwanza The good news is that our container arrived in Dar es Salaam in the first week of August. It reached Tanga the week after and was swiftly unloaded - [...]
July 2014
Tools Wanted
We have been very successful at collecting tools recently - they have been pouring in and we are running out of storage space. So in the short term, we are unable to take larger items [...]
June 2014
June News
Welcome to our June NEWSLETTER Container No 9 away to Mwanza Phil poses in the now traditional manner - 15.1 tonnes of tools with one hand! We wanted to paint the container before sending it, [...]
April 2014
Happy volunteers in the workshop
Scott, Andrew and Lynette packing our last carpentry kit for Tanga today. Now the boxes have to be painted Tanga Blue . . . they are colour coded to make unloading easier. Singida kits are [...]
Buddy, can you spare a dime?
Do you have any unwanted old coins lurking in a drawer? If you do then the charity Tools For Self Reliance Cymru would love you to bring them to an event where we have a [...]
Grant Success
We have been awarded a grant of £2,500 by the Millenium Stadium Charitable Trust, for recruiting more volunteers for our workshop and any management and training costs this will entail. Thank you MSCT . . [...]
Success in Geita
Antony Safari and Family Click here for another Success Story from Tanzania
March 2014
How we did . . .
Click to read our latest Annual Review
January 2014
Extended Open Hours for Tool Sales
We are pleased to announce our new OPEN HOURS Now open from Tuesday to Friday for tool refurbishing and TOOL SALES. This is thanks to our recent grant from Santander. Our stocks are high at [...]
Hakizetu Young Women and Girls’ Rights Organization, Mwanza
Hakizetu, once again would like to express her sincere thanks to TFSR Cymru for the six sewing machines that were provided to Haizetu women’s Rights Organization, that enabled Haizetu to start her campaign of economic [...]
December 2013
MWISHO wa MWAKA NEWS
Christmas Gifts in Kind - to help the people of Tanzania You can now buy a range of Gifts in Kind direct from our web site or from our Crickhowell shop. Prices range from £10 [...]
November 2013
November News
We are delighted to announce that we have been awarded a grant of £10,000 from Santander. The Social Enterprise Development Awards are part of Santander’s commitment to supporting small businesses and local communities. SEDA [...]
September 2013
TOOLS FOR SELF RELIANCE CYMRU
TOOLS FOR SELF RELIANCE CYMRU collects old and unwanted hand tools from all over Wales. We clean, repair and sharpen them, and send tool kits to grass roots community groups in several African countries. At [...]
August 2013
Bumper News from Cymru
Email not displaying correctly? View it in your browser. A Bumper Newsletter from Cymru as you haven't heard from us for a while. We have been busy as you will read ... Container News [...]
May 2013
Why we send tools to Tanzania – a reminder
This is the working sledge hammer of the Nyiboko Blacksmiths Group in the remote Serengeti District of Tanzania. A danger to the user and anyone nearby. A sledge from TFSR Cymru will give many years [...]
April 2013
Warmer News from us . . .
A Great Big Thank You . . . The response to our Easter Appeal was amazing. We have had so many generous donations in a very short time, that we have now bought the container, [...]
COOL News from Cymru
Send us an Easter Egg to help us ship our next container? In these difficult financial times we are struggling to raise the money to send our next container to Tanzania. Thanks to the generous [...]
February 2013
Latest Annual Review
Shovels in our Mwanza workshop . . . the simple idea behind our work: recycling hand tools, many of which might otherwise have ended up in landfill sites, and redistributing them to people [...]
January 2013
We are appreciated . . .
TFSR Cymru was presented with this certificate for helping to sponsor the cost of blacksmiths from Lake Zone to attend the recent Trade Exhibition in Mwanza. This exhibition provides a wonderful opportunity for the smiths [...]
New Year News
THIS IS OUR 30th BIRTHDAY YEAR In October this year, it will be 30 years since Tools For Self Reliance first came to Crickhowell. In 1996 - half way along our timeline, we became TFSR [...]
Training the Trainers
Dave Field, a trainer from Hereford College of Blacksmithing, has just returned from a fortnight in Tanzania where he has been teaching advanced techniques to the best of the blacksmith groups we are working with [...]
September 2012
Sewing Machine Training in Pangani + kits delivered to Kagera
July saw 38 members from 17 different groups take part in a course designed to help them maintain their sewing machines and to repair them when they go wrong. This as just as important as [...]
July 2012
NEW AWARD FOR TFSR CYMRU . . .
Ian and Tony with our brand new road sign, awarded to TFSR Cymru for our work with SIDO in and around Mwanza. More information on Wales Africa Links facebook page “You changed my life. I [...]
June 2012
We have buckets – we need sewing machines!
Our container left for Tanzania in April, and arrived in Dar es Salaam on 25th May with 13 tonnes of tools and sewing machines. We are still short of embroidery machines for women's groups in [...]
March 2012
ANNUAL REVIEW 2010/2011
Read how we did last year . . . Just click here - An Review for web . . Mhambo Mwinamila making a goat bell for our Fair Trade tools programme
Land grab or development opportunity?
Click here to read more about this issue which affects many African countries
November 2011
New TOOL collection point is now up and running
A new tools collection point in Carmarthen is up and running, and Colin Hill picked up some nice tools today. It's in the Healthy Planet bookstore, which is in the old Allied Carpet store in [...]
August 2011
Green Man Festival
We had a wonderful dry Green Man Festival Our workshops were as popular as ever - blacksmithing hooks and pokers, and making hazel whistles. Sold a few tools too . . .
July 2011
June 2011
May 2011
Garden Tools Delivered . . .
A large lorry blocked Standard Street this week while volunteers unloaded an enormous pile of tools collected in the recent "Tools Amnesty", run by the the Garden Centre Group with garden centres in South Wales. [...]
February 2011
Annual Review Published
Click to read all about our efforts last year . . . . Annual Review 2009.2010 for email
November 2010
Fair Trade Tools attract Jane Davidson to TFSR stall
Jane Davidson, Welsh Assembly Minister for the Environment, was impressed with the Fair Trade tools on our stall at the Brecon Beacons Green Fair. . . . . . She was one of many who [...]
October 2010
Dr William Shija – a new Patron for TFSR Cymru
We are so pleased to announce that Dr William Shija has just agreed to become the first patron of TFSR Cymru. Dr Shija is the Secretary General of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association and [...]
NEW Tools arrived from Tanzania
We have new Fair Trade Tools - adzes and spar hooks - just arrived from Anthony Safari Blacksmiths Group in Geita, Tanzania Available with or without a leather blade cover. Visit our workshop or buy [...]
We have been at . . .
Recently we have been at The Big Apple - Much Marcle, Abergavenny World Trade Fair, Brecon Beacons Green Fair, Green Man Festival, Sennybridge Show, Abergavenny Food Festival, and the Big Skill, Penpont.
August 2010
“BEST STALL AT THE FESTIVAL” – Jamie
Green Man Festival - Crickhowell Thursday 19th August - Sunday 22nd August. Some rain some shine . . . We sold our lovingly refurbished tools, and our new Fair Trade Tools from Tanzania. Our [...]
July 2010
NEW: Buy TOOLS online
You can now purchase our Fair Trade Tools online. All profits from selling these tools go towards our project which provides training to blacksmiths groups within Lake Zone, Tanzania. They are taught new skills on [...]
Joint Project with SIDO Mwanza – More Tools for Tanzania
The Mwanza Workshop and has been up and running since June 2005. The two Tanzanian workers Saidi and Vivienne are turning out tool kits for artisan groups in Lake Zone, refurbishing over 200 [...]
June 2009
September 2008
More Tools sent…
Our forth container of tool kits and unrefurbishd tools was sent to Tanzania in September 2009. Now almost all the tools have been refurbished and distributed to groups in Laze Zone. We are [...]
July 2005
Linking TFSR Cymru in Wales & SIDO in Mwanza, Tanzania
Over the past 26 years TFSR Cymru has sent more than 500 kits of tools (35,000 refurbished tools) to blacksmiths, carpenters, tailors and other artisan groups throughout Africa. We have become quite successful [...]
February 2005
17 tonnes and holding over 16,000 tools
In February 2005 we sent off the container, weighing 17 tonnes and holding over 16,000 tools and pieces of equipment. It has passed through Dar es Salaam, and is at last in Mwanza. Now SIDO [...]
November 1992
A technology ignored by the powerful – why?
Glyn Roberts Founder of Tools for Self Reliance Something puzzles me, something about people using tools. This is a very human activity and nearly always a good one. But if the idea of tools in [...]