The Havelock Centre, Southsea celebrates receiving over £15K of National Lottery funding to upgrade centre
The Southsea based Havelock Centre is today celebrating after being awarded £15,817 in National Lottery funding to carry out essential improvement to the centre which offers a wide range of community events, children’s activities and fitness classes.
The new funding from The National Lottery Community Fund, which distributes money raised by National Lottery players for good causes and is the largest community funder in the UK, will be used to replace the worn out flooring in the main hall and refurbish the astro turf in the garden area. These improvements will improve the functionality of the hall and garden, make these spaces safer and more welcoming to users.
The Havelock Centre on Fawcett Road, Southsea is at the heart of the Southsea community with over 35,000 visits per year. The upgrades to the hall and astro will provide a safer, more accessible environment for a diverse range of groups which include Seated Movement, Grannies and Toddlers, Connors Toy Library, Chat over Chai and Autism Hampshire meetings. The centre also provides vital services including Stay and Play sessions and Warm Space for those affected by the cost-of-living crisis.
Amy Feist, Manager at The Havelock Centre says: “We’re delighted that The National Lottery Community Fund has recognised the important role our centre plays in the Southsea community. Now, thanks to National Lottery players we will be able to move ahead with the vital refurbishment work which will significantly improve the space for both regular groups and private hires, ensuring that the Centre continues to thrive and meet the needs of our community.”
The National Lottery Community Fund recently launched its strategy, ‘It starts with community’, which will underpin its efforts to distribute at least £4 billion of National Lottery funding by 2030.
As part of this, the funder has four key missions, which are to support communities to come together, be environmentally sustainable, help children and young people thrive and enable people to live healthier lives.
National Lottery players raise over £30 million a week for good causes across the UK. Thanks to them, last year (2023/24) The National Lottery Community Fund awarded over half a billion pounds (£686.3 million) of life-changing funding to communities across the UK, supporting over 13,700 projects to turn their great ideas into reality.
To find out more visit www.TNLCommunityFund.org.uk