--- title: We need you: the timebank is in your hands | TimeBank Ireland description: Ireland's community timebank. Give an hour of help, earn an hour back. Swap skills with neighbours, free to join, every hour worth the same. canonical: https://hour-timebank.ie/blog/we-need-you-the-timebank-is-in-your-hands generated: 2026-11-15T14:27:19.634Z ---![We need you: the timebank is in your hands](https://api.project-nexus.ie/storage/tenant_2/uploads/blog/b3e7fc59-d16a-4158-81fe-c09fe6d9b134.png) Community Exchange # We need you: the timebank is in your hands 15 November 2026 6 min read 0 comments *The timebank has no paid broker right now. Until it does, the timebank is all of us.* In mid-December our new online home turns one. A great deal of work has gone into it this year, and we think it has grown into something really good: friendlier, easier to use, and ready for many more of us. But a website is only an empty hall until people walk in. And here is the honest part. At the moment we have **no paid broker** : nobody whose job it is to welcome people, match them up and get things going. Until we do, it comes down to us, the members. So this is an invitation. We want to get timebanking moving again, here in West Cork where we are based and right across Ireland, and we can't do it without you. ## Can your neighbours find you? Many members don't appear in the members list at the moment. Some haven't logged in since we moved to the new site. Others have a profile that isn't finished yet. If nobody can find you, nobody can ask for your help, or offer you theirs. A few minutes puts that right: 1. Log in. Forgotten your password? Ask for a new one here. 2. Follow the short welcome steps if the site shows them to you. 3. Add a photo and a few words about yourself. A face and a sentence or two is plenty. 4. Pick the skills and interests you have now. They may have changed since you joined. [Log in and finish your profile](https://hour-timebank.ie/settings?tab=profile) ## Everyone has something to offer That is the first value of timebanking, and we mean it. You don't need a trade or a certificate. If you can spare an hour, you have something another member needs. It can be as simple as company. A chat over a cup of tea, or a video call with someone who lives alone, is real timebanking. And you don't have to live near anyone: plenty of help can be given by phone or on a screen. ### You could offer - Company and a chat - A friendly video call - A lift to the shops - A hand in the garden - Help with a phone or a form - Cooking or baking - Dog walking - Teaching music or a language - Small jobs around the home ### You might need - Someone to talk to - A walking companion - A lift to an appointment - The garden tidied - Help getting set up online - Something mended or altered - A hand moving furniture - To learn a new skill - A letter or a CV looked over **Asking is not taking.** When you ask for help, you give another member the chance to be useful. A timebank only works when people do both. [Post an offer](https://hour-timebank.ie/listings/create?type=offer) · [Post a request](https://hour-timebank.ie/listings/create?type=request) · [See what other members are offering and asking for](https://hour-timebank.ie/listings) ## Have a look around If you haven't visited for a while, a lot has changed. Take ten minutes and wander. - Offers and requests: what members can give, and what they'd love a hand with. - Members: see who else is here, and say hello to someone new. - Feed: share a bit of news, or tell us what you've been up to. - Groups and events: join a group, or start one. Prefer your phone? [Get the app for iPhone or Android](https://hour-timebank.ie/install-app) . ## Tell us what you think The site was built for you, so your view counts for more than ours. What do you like? What's confusing? What's missing? Good or bad, we read every word. [Send us your thoughts](https://hour-timebank.ie/contact) ## Five values every timebank shares Timebanking as we know it began in 1980 with Edgar Cahn, an American civil-rights lawyer. While recovering from a heart attack, he found he did not like being someone who could only receive help. He believed nobody should be written off as having nothing to give, and he wrote down the values timebanks around the world still follow. ### 1. Everyone has something to give Each of us has something another person needs: a skill, a kind word, a spare hour. Nobody is only someone to be helped. ### 2. Some work is beyond price Raising children, caring for someone, looking out for neighbours. Money rarely pays for this work. Timebanking counts it. ### 3. Helping goes both ways Giving and receiving belong together. The question stops being “How can I help you?” and becomes “How can we help each other?” ### 4. We need each other A community is stronger than any one person. Every exchange is one more thread of trust between neighbours. ### 5. Respect for every person Every person matters and deserves to be listened to, whoever they are. [Read the whole story in our timebanking guide](https://hour-timebank.ie/timebanking-guide) ## We're looking for our next broker Over the years we have had wonderful brokers. They got group activities going and brought people together who might otherwise have stayed at home on their own. Bringing people into the community is what this timebank has always been about. It works, too. An independent study of our timebank in 2023 found: - €16 of social value for every €1 put in - 100% of members reported better wellbeing - 95% felt more connected to their community [Read the impact summary](https://hour-timebank.ie/impact-summary) We are looking for funding now so we can bring a broker back. In the meantime, every profile finished and every offer posted shows funders a timebank that is alive and worth backing. **Can you help us find the funding?** If you know of a grant, a funder or a local business that might back a broker, or you simply have an idea, [please tell us](https://hour-timebank.ie/contact) . ## Five small things, this week Do one, or do all five. Each one helps. 1. Finish your profile 2. Post one offer 3. Post one request 4. Have a look around 5. Tell us what you think ## New to timebanking? If this is the first you've heard of us, you are very welcome. Joining is free, and everyone's hour is worth the same. Whatever you can offer, there is someone who would be glad of it. [Join TimeBank Ireland](https://hour-timebank.ie/register) > Ní neart go cur le chéile.There is no strength without unity. (Irish proverb) A timebank isn't a website, and it isn't a broker. It's people who decide to look out for one another. Thank you for being one of them. *With thanks,everyone at TimeBank Ireland* Translate Like Comment Share [Back to Blog](/blog)