What is mysterious is why it took so long for an electrical bike rental service to hit York. Electric bikes started cropping up around the city in April 2021, and they’ve been a hit ever since. We decided to try one on for size.

Which is the best app to rent a bike in York?

At the time of writing, the Tier bike rental app has the monopoly in York. The company also operates an electric scooter network around the city, which licensed drivers can use simply by downloading the Tier app. Unlike private scooters, it’s legal to use a rental electric scooter in York as part of the government’s trial scheme.

How the Tier bike rental scheme works

First things first – if you want to make use of Tier’s e-bikes and scooters, you’ll need a valid driving licence. If you only want the bikes, it’s less restrictive. The age limit for e-bikes is 16, while the e-scooters is 18, plus a valid driving licence. Tier’s ethos is safety-first. That includes penalties for drink-driving, just as there would be in a car. Messing about is ill-advised.

How to sign up to Tier in York

To get started, you’ll need to download the Tier app. It’s a very friendly user interface which takes you through sign-up intuitively. Fill out your personal details and have your driving licence to hand. It’ll ask you to scan this before taking you through to payment setup.

You can hook the app up to your payment card, and then once it’s all approved, you’re ready to go. Just scan the QR code to start. The app features a map screen outlining all the locations of e-scooters and e-bikes in York, relative to where you are. Make sure you turn on location services.

Where are the Tier bikes located in York?

The Tier electric bikes and scooters cover everywhere within York’s outer ring road, from the city centre out to locations such as Upper Poppleton, Haxby, Dringhouses and Heslington. There are some restricted zones and some speed-restricted zones:

Red zones (no riding allowed):

• Coney Street
• Palmer Street
• Museum Street

Speed-restricted zones:

• York Art Gallery
• Frederic Street
• York Minster

Again, these are for safety reasons, stopping or slowing down rides in built-up areas. Tier in York is most useful for those who want to cruise around the city centre and to spots such as the University.

The zones are colour-coded on the map. Anything in off-white is safe to ride at full speed. Yellow signifies a speed-restricted zone, and red a no-riding zone. These areas will show up on the map once you start your ride.

How much does it cost to rent a Tier bike in York?

Electric bike rental in York is charged by the minute. You’ll pay £1 to unlock the bike initially, and then 20 pence for every minute travelled. You’ll see all of this broken down in an itemised invoice sent to your sign-up email address after your journey.

Of course, there are additional charges if you break the rules. Traffic offences, illegal parking or destruction of the bikes can cost up to four figures, so ride responsibly. You must return the bike to a designated parking bay once you’re done. This can cost up to 50€ (£43) if you don’t, so it’s not worth the risk.

Can I reserve a Tier electric bike in York?

You can reserve a Tier electric bike in York. Locate the bike symbol on your map and click on the one you want to reserve. You can reserve it for free for up to 10 minutes. During this time, it won’t unlock for any other users.

Riding the Tier electric bike

Now we’ve signed up, it’s time for the fun part – riding your electric bike.

How many Tier electric bikes are there in York?

At the time of writing, there are 50 Tier electric bikes scattered around York. They’re far outnumbered by the e-scooters, of which there are 250, so you’ll need to consult the map. There are 40 designated parking bays around York, so you won’t have trouble finding one.

Getting set up on the bike

To get started, open the Tier app and scan the QR code on the bike. You can even lodge your mobile phone in the holder and wirelessly charge as you cruise. The app will give you some safety instructions, including restricted zones and how to pay attention on the roads. It’ll even give you the option to wear a helmet, which is locked inside the bike.

There is also a lock attached to a thick wire, which you’ll need to pull out of the bike once you’ve activated it. You can stow this in a compartment on the back wheel, though in our experience, it tended to dangle off a little. There’s a simple twist mechanism to adjust the seat, plus a basket with a 15kg weight limit.

Next, kick off the kickstand and you’re away.

Riding the bike

There are all manner of beeps and bleeps as you set off, making for a futuristic but friendly experience. There’s also a dashboard so you can see what speed you’re going, right next to where you can store your mobile phone.

Riding is generally a smooth experience. As soon as you start to pedal, you’ll feel the electric throttle kick in and soon you’re only doing half the work. Stop pedalling at your peril, though – it will carry you, but you’ll need to put in a little effort, too.

By law, e-bikes cannot exceed 15.5MPH with electronic assistance. We managed to get the bike up to a very commendable 17MPH with some pedalling, though we suspect the speedometer was flattering us. In short, it’s the perfect speed for those who don’t want to go full throttle on a pushbike, but also want some extra pace when commuting. The brakes are very responsive and it’s an all-round comfortable ride. Though it feels heavy when mounting, this soon glides away as the electric kicks in.

In-app features

Not only is Tier environmentally friendly; it’s also very user friendly. The app presents clear instructions on how to stay safe, and how to mount/dismount to return the bike safely.

Head to your personal dashboard and you can save money with the in-app wallet. Make use of the Tier pass or buy rides for a friend. There are also regular promotions on the Tier mailing list, so it’s worth signing up.

Better still, find a starred bike or scooter and you’ll qualify for five free minutes on future rides. (You’ll need to go 500m from the starting point to get these.) The app also offers a “beginner mode” if you want to accelerate more smoothly and travel at reduced speeds.

The verdict

Getting around York isn’t always easy, particularly during busy tourist seasons. Tier couldn’t have arrived a moment too soon, and it’s wonderful to have this eco-friendly alternative to cruise around the city.

Design-wise, it’s not infallible – the locking wire can come loose and it feels a little uneasy and heavy to mount the bike. But once you’re away, you feel completely safe, almost as if the app is talking to you.

Setting up the app is a little cumbersome with the scanning of your driver’s licence, but it’s worth it for the safety. Once you are set up, it really is a case of scan the QR code and go. Dropping off couldn’t be simpler either – just hit ‘stop ride’ and you’ll be charged immediately.

At the time of writing, the e-bikes in York are far outnumbered by scooters, which explains why we don’t see many in use day-to-day. But in our opinion, they’re far more fun than the scooters, at almost double the speed with a smoother, more secure ride.

Our verdict? Cheap, reliable and fun – we just wish there were more e-bikes in York. And if you enjoy the experience of electric bike riding, and want a handy commuting bike, try one of our best folding electric bikes.

Find out more about hiring an e-bike in York here.

This review originally appeared on Electro Heads.

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The internationally-acclaimed weight training program was devised by New Zealand-born athlete Philip Mills in 1990 and today can be found in 17,500 health clubs around the globe. Comprising 30, 45 or 60-minute sessions, the workout involves choreographed moves to music, focusing on the leg, chest, back, bicep, tricep, shoulder and abdominal muscles. New workouts are released four times per year, and this time, Body Pump 100 promises to deliver during its official global launch this month.

So what can we expect from Body Pump 100? “That would be telling!” says Martin Franklin, CEO of Les Mills UK. “What we can say is that our 100^th track list is full of inspiring and high-energy songs from artists including Calvin Harris and Rihanna.”

One thing that fitness fans can be assured of is a continually effective workout, which has been confirmed by thorough scientific studies. “All of our classes are steeped in research. For example, the Body Pump Squat Study, as published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, concluded that lifting lighter weights at a faster tempo will burn more fat and increase muscle strength and endurance,” says Franklin.

Of course, in 25 years of scientific development, the programme has inevitably changed, and Franklin adds that it will continue to evolve as Les Mills welcomes a new generation of instructors. Kirsty Whitlock, a Les Mills-trained instructor based in York, has witnessed these changes since she began teaching in 1998. “In the beginning the set position was slightly wider and there were big shoulder rolls,” she says. “Today we see more pulses, and the music is more contemporary than the former 90s rock and cheese!”

Whilst the 10-track format has remained consistent, Franklin says that toning comes as a result of “keeping the muscles guessing.” This is supported by constantly updated routines which put the muscles under tension, helping to build strength through repetition.

The myriad benefits of Body Pump have been endorsed by fans and trainers alike, including group fitness instructor Jenna Barker, whose passion for group exercise came as a result of her own personal weight loss journey. “After losing a lot of excess weight from childhood, I was introduced to Body Pump by a friend and loved it. I went every week and it helped me to tone up and lose excess skin – I’ve now been teaching for four years and have never looked back! If I can do it, anyone can.”

Despite the prevalence of mobile workout apps and stars such as Joe Wicks ruling social media, the team at Les Mills International remain confident that Body Pump will continue to prosper. Franklin says: “Studies* have shown that group exercise is preferred by nine out of 10 people, and we’ve seen a 26 per cent increase in class participation over the last three years. 100 releases is a testimony to the success of the programme itself, and we’re excited to see where the next 100 releases take us.”

Gyms across the globe will be working out in unison on January 14, including a Body Pump Masterclass as led by Les Mills Regional Training Coordinator Denice Burr in London. These events will also serve to raise money for the Les Mills Fund for Children, which aims to improve children’s mental and physical health and access to education.

As fitness fans and first timers continue to see out their New Year’s Resolutions, there is no doubting that Body Pump 100 will live up to expectations, and Franklin is looking forward to a huge turnout. “With Body Pump 100 it’s about bringing together everyone who takes our classes, along with our community of instructors and trainers from across the globe.

“On January 14, they will all come together for the first time to celebrate this famous fitness movement and raise money for the next generation to get involved and enjoy exercise – a very fitting way to mark such a significant milestone.”

* Dr. James Annesi, Effects of Minimal Group Promotion on Cohesion and Exercise Adherence

More information on the global launch of Les Mills International’s BODY PUMP 100 can be found at https://www.lesmills.com/bodypump100. To find out more about the company’s chosen charities, visit http://lesmillsfundforchildren.org.uk/.   

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Twenty years can bring about a lot of changes to a city. Nobody knows this better than Kate McMullen, a History graduate who today finds herself leading one of the most successful tourist organisations in Britain.

For Surrey-born Kate, leaving York after her degree was simply out of the question. Hence her career in tourism began to flourish from the moment she graduated in 1995. “I didn’t have a clear focus on my career path, so I took an opportunity to work for a York-based tour operator. Travel and tourism was a really interesting area for me – you’re essentially dealing with the parts of people’s lives that they really enjoy.”

Kate’s role soon expanded into the business side of York tourism, and in 1999 she started work as Head of Marketing for Visit York. In September 2013, she was offered a role as Head of Visit York, and can now boast a number of high profile events in her catalogue of achievements.

Without a doubt, Kate counts the 2014 Tour de France Grand Départ as one of her proudest moments. “The Tour de France running through York was fantastic – it was a great thing to happen under my watch. It achieved £1.3 billion worth of profile and television coverage around the world. We would never have the opportunity to buy that sort of profile.”

Kate is also keen to promote her work on a short break project, which seeks to market York as a short break destination to areas such as London and Scotland. The campaign has been so successful that it was recently shortlisted for Tourism Marketing Campaign of the Year at the National Marketing Awards.

In another accolade for the city, York was designated a City of Media Arts by UNESCO in December 2014. York is now one of only seven cities around the world to receive such an honour, and to date is the only UK-based award winner. “It opens up fantastic potential for us,” says Kate. “In many ways it links the repositioning of the city and the contrast of a heritage city that’s 2,000 years old but is still at the cutting edge of the creative and media arts industries.”

So how will this affect York’s tourism industry, and its position as a leader in business opportunities? Kate admits she would love to see an even more varied offering from some of York’s biggest digital media events. “I’d love to see an expansion of Illuminating York, as well as a bigger York Christmas product.” Visit York will also invest in digital media to make York more appealing during its “twilight hours” between 5:30 and 8pm.

From a business perspective, then, the award will surely bolster Visit York’s biggest project: Make It York. The scheme will encourage firms to relocate to York, while also encouraging the city’s current businesses to expand. “York has a fantastically well-qualified workforce and we’ll marry that up with our leisure destination marketing.”

Of course, Kate acknowledges the University of York’s key role in the destination marketing of the city. The recent £50m investment into campus developments, Kate says, has helped to further strengthen the University’s reputation and improve connections with Visit York. “We do a lot of shared work with the University. It’s a huge company that employs lots of people, attracts international students and has a fantastic profile for research
and teaching.”

One key element of Visit York’s ongoing relationship with the University is the prospective YuCard, which will encourage alumni who have left the city to come back and make the most of the tourist offerings available. “There’s been a huge change to York in the last 20 years,” says Kate. “For example, we’ve seen an explosion in city centre shopping, which now rivals bigger retail destinations, as well as a fantastic restaurant and café bar culture.”

While a return to York may come as something of a shock for some York alumni, Kate insists that York still maintains its historic charm, and looks back fondly at her memories of student life in the city. “I had an incredible three years studying here, spending my evenings working in the Charles XII in Heslington and meeting new people. The beauty of it is that you can meet up with old friends you haven’t seen for years and feel like you’re back in the Vanbrugh bar.”

As York begins to establish itself among the market leaders in business tourism, Kate reflects proudly upon her personal achievements and looks forward to an even more prosperous future. “We can offer a vibrant city that’s both 21st century and historic. It’s been an evolution.”

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In 1997, Noel Gallagher couldn’t believe his luck when he found himself arriving at Downing Street in a Rolls Royce to greet the new prime minister. “I’d only signed off the dole four years earlier – I was laughing all the way there, thinking: ‘what a trip!’”. Trip being the operative word, then, as the Oasis frontman confessed to taking drugs in a toilet reserved for the Queen on the same occasion.

Such was the hysteria of the Britpop era, which bore some of Britain’s most iconic artists and some of popular culture’s bitterest rivalries. Inspired by the glam and punk rock days of yore, Britpop was a rebellious two fingers to the emerging US grunge scene: bands such as Oasis, Blur, Pulp and Suede would reference British culture and sing in regional accents. Britpop wasn’t about the lead singer – it was about the band.

Bitter Brits

By the mid ’90s, Manchester-born siblings Noel and Liam Gallagher were breaking records left, right and centre with their album What’s the Story Morning Glory, featuring Britpop classics including Wonderwall and Don’t Look Back in Anger. It won the Best British album in 1996 at the Brit Awards, and to date is the third best-selling album in UK history.

Perhaps the album’s most memorable tune, however, was Roll With It: in what became known as “The Battle of Britpop”, Oasis’ London rivals, Blur, controversially released Country House on the same day, beating the band with 274,000 copies sold compared to Oasis’ 216,000 copies. Country House and Roll With It charted at number one and two respectively.

The rival bands were not known for making themselves popular with other bands either. Spice Girls singer Melanie Chisholm famously challenged Liam Gallagher at the Brit Awards in 1997 while picking up the Best Single award. Gallagher had previously stated he would not be attending as he might “smack the Spice Girls”, prompting Chisholm to warn him: “come and have a go if you think you’re hard enough”.

A new wave

The legacy of Britpop continued to shape the latter end of the ’90s; a renewed optimism in Britain gave rise to the term “cool Britannia”, paving the way for New Labour while referencing ’60s throwback Union Jack designs, including Geri Halliwell’s iconic Brit Awards dress.

Today, Britpop legends have done a lot of growing up since Pulp frontman Jarvis Cocker famously bent over during Michael Jackson’s Earth Song performance at the 1996 Brit Awards. Notably, both Noel Gallagher and Damon Albarn buried the hatchet and stood onstage together at a Teenage Cancer Trust event at the Royal Albert Hall in 2013. While New Labour may not have fared as well, it’s undeniable that Britpop’s legacy will continue to live on in years to come.

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Based in the Covent Garden Piazza, the London Transport Museum chronicles the journey of London’s infrastructure from the early 19^th Century to modern day. There are currently 450,000 items kept in galleries and as part of exhibitions and other activities. From hidden London tours to modern art, visitors are also given a glimpse of future transport methods for the next generation.

Accessible facilities

Wheelchairs are provided upon request, with lifts to all exhibits and attractions, though due to the historic nature of some collections, not all vehicles are accessible. For hearing impaired visitors, induction loops can be found throughout the museum, with all audio visual exhibits fitted with induction loops or subtitles. Gallery Talks are available in BSL, though these must be booked in advance by calling 020 756 57298.

Water bowls are provided for assistance dogs and large print highlight tours are available upon request, as well as magnifiers. Visitors can also book described tours in advance over the telephone. Full disabled access and magnifiers are available for the library, though it is recommended to call ahead to use this facility.

What’s on at the London Transport Museum

Year of Engineering

From 23^rd March, visitors can explore the innovations in tunnelling from Brunel to Crossrail, or enjoy the Future Engineers gallery with an interactive space for parents and children. Easter family fun will also take place between 30^th March and 15^th April; plus there is the Summer of Engineering programme to look forward to from July.

Evening events

Visit on Thursday and Friday evenings from 6:45 for ticketed events such as the Swinging Sixties on 18^th May or the Late Debate: Environment Matters on 7^th June. Adults: £15. Concessions and LTM Friends: £12.

For more information, visit Ltmuseum.co.uk.

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An adventure through three centuries

Wrest Park offers its visitors a walk back through time, with design inspirations from three centuries. Located in Silsoe, Bedfordshire, the Grade 1 listed country house is one of the only examples of 19^th Century English architecture following the style of an 18^th Century chateau. The main attraction of Wrest Park however is its vast offering of formal garden landscapes, which date back to the 17^th Century. Every piece of Wrest Park’s incredible history is brought to life by its wealth of on-site accessible facilities.

For the hard of hearing, Wrest Park offers portable hearing loops, audio tours and additional audio tours for younger visitors. In the exhibition area, guests can find out more about the history of the property with a short film, which also contains subtitles and an audio transcription if required.

For a more tactile experience, deafblind visitors are invited to touch the gardens’ wide variety of ornaments and sculptures, as well as the surrounding trees, roses and wildflowers. Group tours can be taken at £2 per person, and guide dogs are catered for with water bowls.

With facilities for disabled visitors, adults and children, there truly is something for everyone at Wrest Park. For more information on this English Heritage attraction, visit www.english-heritage.org.uk.

What’s on at Wrest Park this spring

Butler School – Monday 13^th – Friday 17^th February

Learn what it’s like to be a butler in a country house for a day.

Wallpaper Room Tours – Sunday 5^th March

Enjoy a rare tour around the mysterious Chinese Room (maximum 12 guests).

Wrest Winter Wonders Tour – Monday 6^th March

Closed to the general public, the Wrest Winter Wonders Tour explores the incredible Archaeological Collections Store.

Saturday Archaeology Club – Saturday 11^th March

Ideal for 8 to 16-year-olds, this exclusive club will teach the little ones how to become a conservator for the day.

St George’s Festival – Saturday 22^nd April – Sunday 23^rd April

Join in the St George’s Day celebrations with Georgian ladies, knights and Roman soldiers.

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Today, guests can visit the cathedral either to explore or to worship privately, with sightseeing tours available between the hours of 8:30 am and 4:00 pm. Tours include a walk across the famed Cathedral floor, a climb up the dome to try the acoustics in the Whispering Gallery, rooftop views of London and a look at the resting place of some of Britain’s best-known heroes.

Accessible features for disabled visitors

Wheelchair users can enter the cathedral via the south churchyard entrance, which includes lifts to the crypts and Cathedral floor. Mobility scooters are welcome within the cathedral, though the lift may not be able to accommodate Class 3 or some large Class 2 scooters. Unfortunately, due to the nature of this Grade 1 building, access to the Whispering and Stone Galleries is only available via steps. Wheelchairs can be booked in advance by calling 0207 2468320.

Visually impaired guests

Guide dogs are welcome and dog bowls are provided, while audio description guides are included with admission. Those who would like to experience a guided touch tour can book in advance, and large print and Braille copies of the day’s services are readily available.

Hearing impaired guests

A multimedia British Sign Language tour is available as part of the admission price, and induction loops are available for the entire Cathedral floor, covering all services featuring spoken word elements.

Admission prices

Standard admission (£18 or £16 for concessions) applies to visually and hearing impaired visitors, though a free companion admission is available on a 1:1 basis. The Stone and Golden Galleries are currently closed but will re-open on December 16.

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Watch out, iTunes – vinyl still lives, say record store retailers everywhere. As the sales of physical music media continue to dwindle, independent record stores are fighting back with a resurgence that is attracting music fans young and old.

The notion of a day to celebrate our humble vinyl started in 2007 over in the United States, when record store owners Chris Brown, Eric Levin, Michael Kurtz, Carrie Colliton, Amy Dorfman, Don Van Cleave and Brian Poehner discussed a “Free Comic Book Day” for record stores. The idea soon spread to the UK and has since been endorsed by recording artists James Hetfield, Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen and more.

New releases

Today, Record Store Day is celebrated by stores up and down the UK with special vinyl and CD releases scheduled for the day, while artists from around the world get together to perform, meet and greet fans, and take part in other events. This year you can catch tunes from Nirvana, Regina Spektor, Haim, Bruce Springsteen and Jack White, which join the ranks of 450 new releases.

There is also no shortage of collectors’ items: up for grabs this year amongst others is a briefcase-style turntable, depicting an image of Charlie Brown proclaiming: “I’m real proud of my record collection.” The product, licensed by Peanuts, is one of only 2,400 units made worldwide.

“The biggest sales day of the year”

Of course, while the event is a celebration, it is also a promotional event, and independent record store dealers have seen a huge demand for records in the last decade. Richard Laing, Director of Sales at Seattle’s Sub Pop Records says: “For most of our independent accounts, it’s the biggest sales day of the year”, citing the rise from 2.9 million LPs sold in the US in 2008 to 9.4 million in 2013.

More than 200 stores up and down the UK are taking place this year. To see which record stores are closest to you, head to the Record Store Day UK website.

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More than three decades have passed since members of British rock band Led Zeppelin parted ways. Today, in preparation for the release of the deluxe versions of old studio albums, the band has revealed two previously unheard recordings.

Album re-releases Led Zeppelin, Led Zeppelin II and Led Zeppelin III will be available for purchase on June 3, but the band is treating fans to a little more. Each album will contain a bonus disc, with Led Zeppelin III featuring a previously unheard rendition of Keys to the Highway, recorded in 1970.

Led Zeppelin II will also feature an original version of Whole Lotta Love, one of the band’s greatest hits, which became the theme tune for Top of The Pops throughout the ’70s and was also performed by guitarist Jimmy Page during the 2008 Beijing Olympics closing ceremony.

“I don’t want to have somebody else do it”

Amongst the two new releases, the bonus CDs will also feature alternative versions of songs, works in progress and live tracks. The new material comes as the result of two and a half years’ work from the band’s guitarists Jimmy Page and Robert Plant, who sifted through the archives to re-release what they considered to be the best unheard material.

“I’m authoritative about what was done in the first place – I don’t want to die and have somebody else do it,” says 70-year-old Page.

“A lot of surprises”

Led Zeppelin formed in 1968 and enjoyed a heyday throughout the ’70s, penning such hits as Stairway to Heaven, largely considered to be one of the most influential rock songs of all time. After drummer John Bonham’s untimely death in 1980, the band split and has since only reunited once to play a sell-out concert at the O2 in 2007.

Despite the new releases, the band has no plans to reunite, but Page assures fans that the new albums will bring about “a lot of surprises”.

New releases of Led Zeppelin I, II and III can be pre-ordered now at Ledzeppelin.com.

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In July 2013, best friends and disc jockey aficionados Sophie Austin and Elly Rendall created The Vinyl Library – a not for profit community project based on the sole ethos of sharing rare and classic vinyl records.

30-year-old Sophie runs the London-based library while freelancing at an ad agency, while co-founder Elly also runs art projects in the local community. “We wanted to create a space for music events,” explains Sophie, who has had a keen interest in vinyl records ever since she and Elly bought their first DJ decks. “We got bored of downloading music – there would be all these records stuck on your laptop and you wouldn’t know what was what.

“When you collect a record, you have it in your hands – it makes you so happy listening to a record, looking at the album artwork and then remembering where it’s come from, so that’s how the idea came about.”

So how exactly does The Vinyl Library work? Music owners are invited to donate their old records, which gives them access to the same amount as they donate, to borrow for up to one week. Alternatively, fully fledged members can pay £10 a month to hire records for up to a week, while also enjoying the benefits of in-store events.

“It’s become something of a ritual for some of our members – we have regular visits from guys who’ve been bought record players or a year’s membership for their birthdays. There’s a little bit of the unexpected there too – someone chooses their record for the week and it becomes pot luck.”

The volunteer-run community space, located off the high street in Stoke Newington, has come a long way since its humble beginnings in a jewellery shop last July. “We offer music meditation, a sound bar, mixing lessons, live gigs and film screenings. We’re also starting up our own online digital radio to let people come on down and host their own show. People have been excited by the project and come to us with ideas for collaborating – we just do it!”

The library has certainly been attracting attention in its first year, with gigs from The Boiler Room as well as visits from some high flyers in the industry. “We often see label heads and producers walking through the doors wanting to check out the space. We’ve been getting some great feedback from the press and social media as well as the local community. We even had the boys from Corner Shop paying a visit!”

Sophie and Elly’s hard work has clearly been paying off, then – the library has had an impressive 10,000 donations in its first year, with records coming in from as far afield as Hungary, Russia and the US. “Our collection is so eclectic now. We’ve had a lot of white label records donated as well as some old 78s, things that we’re rediscovering that my mum says were big in her day. There’s some very unusual stuff too – including Mongolian folk singing! We have a radio show playing the best of our new donations each week.”

Another important avenue for the library is getting more women involved, and Sophie is proud of the project’s gender-equal demographic. “We read that only 10 per cent of DJs are female and we wanted to change that. So many of our female friends collect records and we saw a gap, not just in our friendship group but in general, so we’ve had girls coming in to try out our music lessons. I’m pleased to say that our membership and volunteer base is an equal mix.”

After gaining 200 members, 7,000 likes on Facebook and 10,000 records, the pair have also learned a few lessons along the way. “I’ve learned that everybody has a gift to give, no matter who they are. It’s so interesting to see how people use their initiative when they’re volunteers rather than paid employees. Some bring their own ideas for events to the table, while others are amazing at cataloguing the records. You don’t learn much about a person’s talent on face value alone, so it’s great to see what skills they have as they get involved with the library.”

With so many achievements since last July, Sophie and her team have even bigger ideas to help the project grow, including building a library “family”. “I love the idea of having a vinyl library mum and dad – older people who can pass their wisdom on to younger people. We’d like to hold listening sessions with parents and kids, to get them away from their laptops and interacting with the music.”

Further down the line, Sophie even has dreams of branching out internationally. “Elly visited Rio de Janeiro recently – there’s a huge vinyl culture out there. We love the idea of selling our record library blueprint to other franchises around the world.”

No matter how big the scope for growth however, Sophie maintains that sharing in the community will continue to be the library’s sole focus. “It’s a creative space that’s different from commercial projects. It’s been a real journey over the last year watching it evolve and grow, but so long as its core values remain, the directions it can go in are endless.”

Visit The Vinyl Library at Unit 1, Foulden Rd, N16 7UT, or log on to facebook.com/TheVinylLibrary

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