The book fair sells second-hand books at bargain prices, covering a range of topics including children’s books, literature, history, travel, science and puzzles. 

Uniting Ballarat executive officer Sean Duffy said every cent raised through the three-day event would go towards non-government funded programs including BreezeWay Meals Program and Lifeline Ballarat, and would “help immensely”.

“On average we provide somewhere between 50 to 70 meals per day 365 days a year and to do that we rely heavily on volunteers, but it also costs a lot of money in terms of food and facilities,” Mr Duffy said.

“We would not be able to maintain our unfunded programs without the support of the events committee, the church congregation and events such as this.”

He said there were many ways people could contribute to the cause including volunteering their time with programs such as BreezeWay and assisting in running events.

But even with the small act of donating or buying a book, Mr Duffy hoped people would make the connection of how it is directly helping individuals in the community who access food programs and homelessness and emergency relief services.

Co-organiser Anita Hinton said the event had raised more than $50,000 so far.

“We get trailer loads of books, so there are a lot of books to be sorted and it keeps us busy throughout the year,” she said.

“The team that are doing it are really committed and love their books, so they like to see them shared around with other people.”

Uniting Ballarat’s Book Fair takes place on Friday, Saturday and Sunday at St Andrew’s Hall on the corner of Dawson and Sturt Streets. The group will also have a site at Springfest.