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The Great “Free or Subsidised by my Council” Hunt
Comments
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Any kids who live in Birmingham or go to a Birmingham LEA school from 4 until they reach 16 can swim for free at the various Birmingham swimming pools. All kids under 4 free swim free. The free swim for 4 - 15 inc. has been going a few years. Just need to get a passport to leisure form filled in and verified, then a pass-card issued.
Adults on benefits can get half-price leisure (inc swimming) with a passport to leisure.
Same in Liverpool but children can also use council gyms too, although age limits vary between gyms. Great summer splash activities for free too including language classes, day trips etc.0 -
East Northants District Council :-
Subsidised Composting Bins (half price I think)
Free home insulation (loft, cavity wall, and lining system for non cavity wall properties) for those receiving benefits, including Child Tax Credits.0 -
:rotfl:billbennett wrote: »Free bit of paper and a yellow and black sticky envelope. All you need to do is park on a double yellow line, and a council operative will leave one for you.
:rotfl:
LoL except it's far from free!! You could buy a whole tree for that much!!:eek:0 -
Our library does loads of DVD's for free rental if they are "Educational" - I borrowed a Top Gear DVD, had my money ready and the lady said no need to pay its educational!If at first you don't succeed, try, try, try - oh bu99er that just cheat
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North Ayrshire do a reduced price leisure pass for swimming if you are on Tax Credits:
https://www.north-ayrshire.gov.uk
Inverclyde do reduced price Pass Plus driving lessons for teenagers:
Go to
https://www.inverclyde.gov.uk
and search on Pass Plus.
Both councils do free internet access in libraries.
Inverclyde over 60s can swim for free.
Inverclyde do free Bookstart Packs for children. Ask library staff for details if you have not received a free pack from your Health Visitor or Early Years setting. Also available is the Booktouch pack for blind and partially sighted children of 0 to 4 years.Debt-free day: 8th May 2015 "Remember that sometimes not getting what you want is a wonderful stroke of luck," Dalai Llama0 -
Most libraries belong to a scheme whereby you can access reference works such as the Oxford English Dictionary and the Dictionary of National Biography and the Oxford "Companion to . . " series online. Normally you access through the library's site (you can do this from home, no need to be at a library) and quote your membership number or a code you get from your local branch - it varies from one authority to another.
A wonderful resource (when I bought the last printed DNB it cost several thousand pounds, thankfully I got a remaindered copy but that was £300!) and as the council only pays one subscription you are not increasing the rates by using it.0 -
Worcestershire libraries offer free access to the 'Ancestry' website, which is brilliant for tracing your family history. I know some other libraries do too, but not sure if all do.0
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Free compost bins in Lancashire, and you can have more than one.
I know others complain about rubbish collections, but round here we have 'brown' wheelie bins for garden waste. I have two brown bins, emptied fortnightly, which are great for anything that won't go in your own compost bin, like woody waste. You can put branches in there up to the thickness of your wrist (although I like to interpret this as a musclely male wrist rather than my puny wrist). The amount of time, effort and petrol (and mess in your car) this saves taking waste to the tip when you've cut back trees and shrubs is worth its weight in gold in my opinion!
My council also take away large unwanted items of furniture, etc, free (I know some councils expect you to pay) although you might have to wait a couple of weeks.0 -
You can often get cashback from councils if you're using reusable nappies. Here's a list of county council cashback schemes from www.lizziesrealnappies.co.uk
Anglesey £70 01248 725700
Bedfordshire£30 01234 228 385
Birmingham £30 0121 303 1935
Bracknell Forest £30 01344 352 000
Bristol £30 0117 914 3459
Buckinghamshire £30 01296 382539
Cheshire £25 0845 11 333 11
Darlington £25 01325 388631
Denbighshire £75 01656 783 405
Derbyshire £25 08 456 058 058
Dorset £30 01305 225002
Dumfries and Galloway £30 01387 260139
Dundee £25 01382 730013
Dundee £25 0790 3001802
East Renfrewshire£30 0141 5773001
Essex £10 01245 437318
Gloucestershire£30 0845 634 2559
Herefordshire£30 01905 766 883
Hertfordshire£40 01923 776611
Kent£30 0845 345 0210
Lancashire£45 0845 0500 957
Leeds£20
Leicestershire£30 0116 305 0001
Lincolnshire£30 01522 782070
London*various 020 7324 4709
Norfolk£30 0844 8008004
North Yorkshire£30 01609 533312
Pembrokeshire£30 07852 284536
Sheffield£10
Staffordshire£30 0800 232323
Surreytrial pack 07768 916 276
Worcestershire£30 01906 766 883
Hope it helps:T0 -
London Borough of Tower Hamlets:
Entry to The Tower of London (adult tickets are £16.50) offer of £1 tickets to residents. You need to take along a library card/idea store card (free from your nearest library or Idea Store) together with proof of address. Tickets can only be bought on the day of your visit, not in advance but otherwise are just like full-priced tickets. This is a year round offer.
The council also has on a Leisure Centre deal at the moment of 9 months for the price of 12 months, £372.15 if I remember correctly. Much cheaper than the corporate gyms in the Canary Wharf/City parts. Best bit is, at off peak times you can share the pool with about three other people!
If you work, live or study in the City, the City of London Coporation Libraries are excellent. Really well stocked both in books, DVD, CDs etc and some DVDs are free.0
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