Following on from the milestone event last July to celebrate the signing of the lease and obtaining planning permission, the Crowborough Community Hub project, based within the disused Station Master’s house at Crowborough station, marches on towards its next milestone.
Having secured site access permission from Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) and Network Rail to carry out the refurbishment, investigative works are underway to reconnect the electricity and water supplies to the hub space. An application has been submitted to Wealden District Council’s CLIF (Community Led Infrastructure Fund) scheme, and a decision is expected in early February. CLIF money will mean that we can carry out most of the work to create a new, exciting, fresh space for the community to use, but other funding from CRN (Community Rail Network) as well as fundraising by members of the public, GTC (Green Transition Crowborough) and Ashdown School has already been kindly donated.
“We are very lucky to have so much support from the community for this project,” said Paul Goddard, Chair of the Crowborough Community Hub project, “and the hub committee are a great team. They each bring their own area of expertise and it is a privilege to lead such a dedicated, enthusiastic and trustworthy group of people.”
Once completed, the hub will be the base for many community groups including: dance classes, fitness and exercise groups, art exhibitions, cooking classes, and even an audio library aimed primarily at those who are vision impaired, but open to anyone with a print disability. It will also be the permanent home of Crowborough Pantry.
“It seems a long time ago since the introduction was made by SCRP (Southeast Communities Rail Partnership) to Bev Pashley of Artytime and GTR, the train operating company,” continued Paul, “but, hopefully, we are getting there. A positive outcome from the CLIF application will mean that works can really start apace with a full launch party later in the year.”
One of our project managers, Paul Maddock, has used his great talents to make some fridge magnets, coasters and wall clocks from the old parquet flooring from the station and these are being sold to raise valuable funds for the project. Fridge magnets cost £2.50, coasters cost £5.00 and four limited edition wall clocks starting at a minimum donation of £100. If you would like to own a piece of nostalgia from Crowborough station, have a fundraising idea or want to make a donation, please email the hub at crowboroughhub@gmail.com
We look forward to welcoming you to Crowborough Community Hub soon.
– Paul Goddard, Chair Crowborough Community Hub Project
