About us

The Southwater Area Community Centre has been open since 18 May 2002, when Michael Foster, local MP, officially opened the building at its launch.

The Centre is located opposite St Leonards Warrior Square railway station at No. 1 Stainsby Street. The aim of the Community Centre is to offer something to everyone and become a focal point for the Southwater Renewal Area.

The Centre has a Management Committee of local volunteers who have been involved in the project from the outset.  A manager, Patrick Bennett, is also employed to to maintain day to day operations and to coordinate events and activities booked into the centre. Patrick is supported by volunteers and the Management committee, to ensure that the centre meets the needs of the community as fully as possible.

The Management Committee

• Georgiana de Lussy
• Digger Brodrick
• Kim Forward
• Simon Corello
• Andrew Cartwright

Centre volunteers

A number of other volunteers are involved with helping to run the Centre.

New volunteers are always welcome, if you are interested in volunteering please contact Patrick by e-mail or by phone on 01424 461414

History

The conversion of a pub called The Clifton Tavern to a community centre was made possible through Single Regeneration Budget (SRB) funding as part of the Southwater Renewal Area programme. Residents in the area saw a desperate need for social regeneration in order to make sure the physical regeneration already taking place would be effective.

In 1999 local residents were consulted about what they saw as the priorities for the area, and from this it was felt that the way to meet a lot of these needs was to have a building from where a range of activities could take place. A questionnaire was then sent round to local residents in 2000 to ask what they would like in a community centre.

In June 2000 a Residents' Action Group was established to concentrate on the setting up of a Community centre. Much time was spent discussing the conversion work that needed to be carried out before the building could be used as a Community Centre, as well as the variety of activities that could take place. The Community Centre became a company limited by guarantee in November 2001 and gained charitable status in 2004.

About PAPAS

Potty About Pots At Southwater - A community Social Enterprise Project.

For information about the "Potty About Pots At Southwater" social enterprise please phone Southwater Community Centre on 01424 461414 or email papas.

We are "Potty about Pots at Southwater" or PAPAS for short. This is a social enterprise project embracing the ideas of Recycle and more important Reuse. In brief we collect from the community plastic and Terracotta flower pots, any colour, shape or quantity. We sort them out and then resell them to the trade at a fraction of the cost of a new pot. Simple idea, but lots of work to collect, sort wash and repackage the items for sale again. However, best of all, the total income from this idea is going to the Southwater Community Centre. This will support the work they do with opportunities for people in this deprived ward of the town. To make it work we have received a grant from Hastings Trust and from Gensing and Central St Leonards Forum. This seed com money will get us the infrastructure we need into the yard at Southwater, and make a work place for the project. Then all we need is some publicity and your POTS.

Space limitations mean that we shall have to collect on a street by street basis at first, then hopefully we can expand the scheme to take in more bulk deliveries from centralised collection points. These are where people currently deposit their goods for recycling/reuse. That step can only happen if the Council come on board to help us down stream.

Volunteers are needed as are your pots. We are confident that this idea will be good for the community, involve the community, reward the community, be active in the community, and be instrumental in bringing together people in the community. Give us a few moments of your time, on any given day, and together we can make a difference to our community.

For more information contact the PAPAS people at Southwater on 01424 461414. With help, we can continue the great start that the project has enjoyed. We've all got pots in the garden so right now think about the PAPAS people and get them collected, or deliver them to us at Southwater.

We are the "Potty About Pots" project at the Southwater Community Centre

April 10 Update

Volunteers to help with the collection, sorting, packing etc are still being sought.

Thank you for your interest in PAPAS. We need your interest and your pots!