Borth Community Hub: A lifeline in the heart of the community
The UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) is funded by the UK Government, and has been rolled out through local authorities in England and Wales.
Cwmpas has been working with Ceredigion County Council, helping community organisations to build pride of place and increase life chances across Ceredigion’s communities.
One of the organisations Cwmpas Business Consultant Nick has been working with under the UKSPF is Borth Community Hub.
Borth is situated about seven miles north of Aberystwyth in north Ceredigion, a diverse county of mid Wales. All of north Ceredigion’s housing stock is off-grid. There is no mains gas supply in this area of rural Wales.
Many residents are older people who were born and bred in Ceredigion. Some have no close family living nearby.
North Ceredigion’s isolation also means that living costs are high: transporting fuel and food to the region is costly, and the costs tend to be passed on to residents.
“It sometimes feels like we’re forgotten”, says Helen Williams, Manager of Both Community Hub. “It can feel a bit of a bleak picture.”
That’s until you get to the Community Hub.
Borth Community Hub was established in 2007 and provides a range of activities which improve the health and wellbeing of children, young people, families, adults and older people, with a focus on those who are most vulnerable and disadvantaged in Borth and the surrounding areas.
The community café is a ‘pay as you feel’ space, open to all regardless of ability to pay.
The family centre (‘want to talk to someone new who doesn’t wear nappies?’) and activities for older people (‘it’s so lovely to come out – I’m not staring at the same four walls’) cater for opposite ends of the community spectrum, while a youth club meets weekly and the men’s shed ‘has their own shed and tools – come in for a chat’.
Through funding from the UKSPF, Cwmpas advised Borth Community Hub on converting from charity to social enterprise status. Nick also supported with advice on sourcing sustainable funding, plus HR and business essentials, creating new HR policies and a staff handbook, an equality and diversity strategy, and policies around the Welsh language, staff training and development, and flexible working.
Helen said:
“The support from the UKSPF has been a huge help, getting us from charity status to social enterprise. We desperately needed support to make sure we were on top of governance issues.
“It’s impossible to be an expert in everything, and Nick, from Cwmpas, has been an absolute star.”
From hosting events and workshops to offering vital resources and services, bringing people together, fostering connections and providing support, the Community Hub is a lifeline to Borth’s residents.
The Hub provides work experience to students at Coleg Ceredigion, and for school pupils through the Welsh Baccalaureate and Duke of Edinburgh’s Awards Scheme.
One of the Hub’s volunteers had been long-term unemployed when he started attending the men’s shed.
Helen picks up the story:
“He enjoyed it so much, he started volunteering. Now, with the confidence he gained through volunteering at the Hub, he has gone on to get a paid job in a local catering outlet. Giving people self-esteem and confidence is a big part of the Hub.
“We work through small scale early interventions. Support is key for us – helping people to feel part of the community. Whether it’s making cups of tea or offering a listening ear, being part of Borth Community Hub means being at the heart of the local community.
“It’s the little things – the difference in people since they’ve been coming. There’s no question – people value the Hub.
“What’s next? We’ll carry on doing what we’re doing. We’ve established that there’s a need, and that need is still there.”
