Westfield Community Hub

Organisers

•              Patricia Marston                Chairperson
•              Andy McFarlane               
•              Lynne McFarlane                              
•              Marion Eaton                      Treasurer                
•              Geoff Bendle                    
•              Norma Bendle                  
•              Tim White                          
•              Sharron Bushell               
•              Tricia Oakland                    Minute Secretary            
•              Irene Almandras
•              Ruth Bumstead 
•              Thelma Brooks   
  

The primary aim of the Westfield Community Hub is to provide a comfortable, friendly and welcoming place for people to meet and where support, information and advice can be found in our village so that the needs of those who live here are better met.

We hope you will support the Hub, as together we can seek help from agencies, services and volunteers to enhance our community resources.

The Hub is currently open every Friday between 10am and noon.  It is supported by people living in or near the Parish of Westfield and it is hoped that funding can be raised and enough people will volunteer to help to enable the facility to continue and possibly grow so that it can be available every week-day.

The Westfield Community Hub evolved from a project in the Westfield Local Action Plan produced in 2005.

Consultations for the Plan indicated that over 400 people felt there should be a central facility in the village where people could drop in to meet friends, have a coffee, get local information and perhaps have access to a computer.

The Westfield Local Action Plan Group, Chaired by Sue France, asked for volunteers to take this project forward and a group of local people met and agreed to undertake further consultation through the Spotlight on Westfield event in 2007. 

Efforts were made to see if existing groups or facilities in Westfield could accommodate the needs identified but this was not possible until Andy from The Old Courthouse Public House offered the pub’s facilities - and here we are!

Current & Future Plans

Please see the Executive Summary of the Business Plan for 2009 to 2011  -  click here

Future of the Hub

The Hub made a promising start after the launch in April 2009, and had a steady number of 'regular' attendees and new faces popping in each week. Now, in 2011, we regularly see between 30 and 40 visitors every Friday.

A number of individuals have volunteered to support the Friday sessions, and/or to help on other days in the event of expansion.   Therefore the future looks encouraging.

Questionnaires completed by visitors indicated that the original plan to widen the range of activities offered and engaging the services of other agencies is valid, and discussions are being held with various organisations, for example:

• Citizens Advice Bureau,
• Health practitioners,
• Training events,
• Job Centre,
• Parliamentary surgeries,

and others.

Computer training has already been completed and there are computers in the Hub with broadband access if you need to use one. Visits by the East Sussex Library Service, Pensions Agency, Police, Age Concern, etc., have been organised and further engaging discussions on an interesting range of topics have been suggested.  We also aim to offer a selection of entertaining activities to meet demand.

Additional ideas for involving more visitors, especially younger people that may be around on Friday mornings would always be very welcome. 

Do you enjoy meeting and helping people?  Are you at a loose end and need something to fill an odd hour or two here and there?  Then do please get in touch.  There are a range of opportunities to help organise and support the running of the Hub.  If you would like the opportunity to meet new people and enjoy finding out exactly what others are interested in, or you have a brilliant idea to entertain, sustain or maintain our community – especially if you have some free time to help make it happen – come along and talk to us, or use the 'contact us' facility on this site for more information.  We would love to hear from you and are grateful for as much or as little support as you can spare - make a cake once a month, help serve refreshments, meet and greet visitors, help with the books, especially lifting and carrying and several other tasks.