LOCAL charity, Marden Community Hub has announced they will be moving to new premises on Calne High Street - previously occupied by Maria's Florist.
However, the charity has recently faced unexpected financial challenges which has left them with severely depleted funds and now they are reaching out to the community for help.
When the trustees agreed terms on the new premises in mid January , they had hoped to be up and running by 1st March, but their move has been delayed whilst they wait for the new landlords to send the contract for the lease.
In the meantime, a misunderstanding at their former premises in Church Street has led to that landlord sending them an invoice for the entirety of March - they had left some wood and the electric cooker in the premises when they left - purely because the person who had originally supplied the cooker had said they would purchase it back, but failed to turn up.
These charges, on top of having to find three months rent in advance as a deposit, has left the charity financially on their knees.
Trustee, Carol Lavery told us: "We have applied to various places for grants over the last three weeks, but have only heard from one, and that has to go before a meeting."
Now, the charity are appealing to local businesses and residents for help to get them through this period of financial uncertainty. "By donating anything from £5 to £500, we would be eternally grateful and so would our users," Carol explained.
When the hub does eventually open on the High Street, it will operate first and foremost to serve the community's most vulnerable residents, supplying hot meals for those struggling to afford to eat and providing a warm space to socialise and meet. but this time there will also be a gift shop too.
"We have been told many times people can’t get cheap cards anymore. In our time off, we have made roughly 200 cards for all occasions starting from 50p up to a maximum of £2.50 for a large 3D card, ( £4.99 in shops)."
"We will have good quality wrapping paper, gift bags, bottle bags and a lot more. We will also be taking care of our pets, we will have lots of new pet toys and blankets. We will not be taking donations of adult clothing, this is in consideration of the other charity shops, however we will accept books, fiction, autobiography only, baby clothes and good quality toys only. We already have quite a few new toys that have been donated. Plus we have a lot of new jewellery."
Future plans for the premises include an opportunity to promote Calne Community crafters with a place to exhibit and sell their items.
If you can help in any way please contact the CEO, Dawn Perkins or Carol Lavery - both can be found on Facebook - they are yet to have a new landline telephone number to supply.
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