HaverHub recognised for providing "vital service to the community"

Funding from the Community Facilities Programme in recent years has helped community centres – as well as a range of other facilities - to make improvements, repairs and redevelopments across Wales.

Projects that have benefitted include Haverhub being awarded funding around three years ago for internal and external redevelopment of the former Post Office.

Gitti Coats, project director at Haverhub Community Interest Company, said: “We spent a lot of the money on getting a full fit out of the kitchen so it could be used commercially, so we could get professional chefs and caterers to use it.

"Thanks to this we are able to run a community café six days a week and a pop-up barista too. It has become a welcoming space for people of all ages to meet.

"We also spent money on AV equipment, so local musicians can come on stage and we have an open mic night once a week.

"We have around 60-80 people coming on a Wednesday night and it provides a safe space and environment for young people to come to."

The exhibition opening of local photographer Michael Crutchley earlier this month. (Image: HaverHub)

Community centres across Wales play a pivotal role in supporting the most vulnerable members of our society, the Minister for Social Justice Jane Hutt declared last week.

"I am so pleased that the Community Facilities Programme has been able to help deliver a vision for the future, and it will make a massive difference supporting the health and wellbeing of the local community.

"We understand that spaces like this are vital to the local community, providing somewhere that clubs can meet, health and fitness programmes can run from and classes people can learn from.

"Community centres play a pivotal role in supporting the most vulnerable members of our society and we are committed to supporting them, through the likes of our Community Facilities Programme, so they can continue providing a vital service to communities across Wales."

Meanwhile Gitti Coats, volunteer project director at HaverHub, wished to correct recent speculation over over grants awarded more recently.

In December the Levelling Up department in London awarded grants under the Community Ownership Fund – and Haverhub was one of them.

But nearly five months later, the company says it has "still not received a penny" of that grant, adding that they are still "ploughing through their processes."

Gitti said: "We hope the funds to make the post office a forever community home-from-home will eventually come.

"The support for core staff under COF is most urgent and the delay has been very difficult for the team. That grant has not yet come to Haverfordwest.

"A recent press release on the Community Facility Program grant was not actually about new funding – but something we received back in Covid about three years ago.

"We used to renovate the main post office, which the public have been enjoying for two years since. 

"They intended to summarise how the funds have benefitted the communities - but unfortunately it came across like a new grant."