Proud volunteers celebrate 25 years of much-loved and well-used community centre in Northampton
Two proud volunteers, who have been part of the journey since the beginning, recently celebrated 25 years of a much-loved and well-used Northampton community centre.
The Pastures Community Centre, located on Welford Road in Kingsthorpe, reached its quarter-of-a-century milestone at the end of September.
Husband and wife duo Robin and Carolyn Marriott have devoted countless hours to voluntarily running the centre ever since it opened. They were joined nine years later by Julia Snedker, who is a trustee and director.
It was Northampton Borough Council who originally built the building and were looking for a committee of volunteers to run the community centre. They paid for a caretaker to look after the site but it was run by community volunteers.
A decade later, under the government’s austerity measures, NBC offered the committee a 30-year lease to take on the full running of the community centre.
In 2012 the management committee formed Pastures Community, which registered as a charity and took over from the local authority. West Northamptonshire Council remain landlords of the building.
Carolyn and Robin put themselves forward to be part of the team of volunteers when the building was in the planning stage, and neither of them imagined they would still be there 25 years on.
The community centre is used by a variety of groups which appeal to people of all ages and interests. This includes Scouts, Guides, yoga, pilates, tai chi, mum and toddler sessions, kickboxing, zumba, extra tuition and a board games club – as well as children’s parties and family celebrations on weekends.
“We can’t believe where the time has gone,” Carolyn told the Chronicle & Echo. “We’re very proud to have got to 25 years and still be running it with the same two people.
“I don’t think either of us really knew what we were taking on, but we’re pleased and proud it has been successful, well-used and the community appreciates it. It has gone from strength to strength over 25 years.”
Carolyn is most pleased that it is a space for people to meet up and socialise, which is ideal in tackling isolation among elderly individuals and giving young people a place to learn new things.
The Pastures Community Centre opened its doors to visitors to celebrate the milestone, and 10 regular user groups had stalls to show what is on offer in the space and recruit new members.
There was also entertainment for children, including face painting, magic performances and an activities table, and many people came away with a greater understanding of what they can access at the community centre.
Carolyn issued her thanks to Kingsthorpe Parish Council for their generous grant to make the celebration event happen – which is also when the attendees put a time capsule up the loft to be opened in decades to come.
“We want to keep it going for as long as we can at a reasonable rate for the community,” said Carolyn. “We want to promote things for the benefit of the NN2 postcode without discrimination, and provide a safe, welcoming and affordable space.”
With the hall limited to 100 people, Carolyn shared that they would one day like to extend the existing space to facilitate larger groups. They will also continue supporting improvements to the nearby Acre Lane playing field.