The Newsome Centre - Nearly there!

It was around 3 years ago that I and Councillors Karen Allison and Sue Lee-Richards were approached by the Church of England regarding the possibility of us taking on St John the Evangelist Church, in Newsome, for community use. It should have been a difficult choice. Taking on an old building with all the costs and upkeep that came with it. But it was a choice we couldn't walk away from. A large building in the centre of Newsome with huge potential for events, conferences and a community cafe, something the village lacks. A place where people could hold celebrations and come together as a community. We couldn't ignore that vision and started making plans.

We established a Community Benefit Society as the body we would need to purchase and develop the centre. We commissioned local architects, One17, to help us realise our vision for the building and to assess the maintenance and improvments we will need to make to the building. We have raised funding to pay for the building and carry out some essential repairs. We have secured planning permission from Kirklees for change of use from a place of worship to a community centre with ancilliary cafe. That is the short version of the story. There have been some frustrations and bumps in the road along the way.

We know that getting ownership of the building is only the beginning of the journey. The roof will need replacing. We have a variety of tarpaulins and buckets collecting rainwater from various points in the roof. The kitchen and toilet block are in a very poor state and we need a small extension and a refit to bring it up to modern standards. There's a lot more that we have planned including upgrading the heating and insulation, creating meeting rooms, removing the pews to give us a usable halls for dancing, exercise clases and events.

We have got local people together to discuss our vision for the building and to get their ideas and input. As local Councillors we have initiated saving the building for the community but now we will need the help of the community to ensure it has a sustainable long term future. There is a lot of work to do but it will be worth it.

If you can donate to our Crowdfunder it would be really appreciated

Make a pledge to The Newsome Centre (Phase 2) Proposal on Spacehive

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