Ambitious plans to create a new purpose built community hub in the centre of Truro are nearing completion – and we are delighted to be playing a part in turning them into reality.
Earlier this year Cornwall Councillors agreed to invest £612,000 through the Langarth project to support the development of the new Truro Lifehouse centre as part of the council’s wider programme of community investment projects.
We want to ensure that our project improves the lives of people already living in Truro and surrounding areas, as well as the new residents who will be moving into Langarth in the future.
Truro Lifehouse will provide a place for everyone: a place where people can get together to meet friends or access help and support if they are struggling and we can’t wait to see it open its doors.
So what is the Lifehouse Project ?
Led by Rev Jeremy Putnam, the Priest in Charge at All Saints Church, the aim of the Truro Lifehouse project is to provide more space to enable the church and its partners to expand the work they are already doing to support vulnerable and isolated people in the local community.
The church already works with more than 30 different groups and organisations, supporting between 600 and 800 people each week who are struggling with food poverty, financial insecurity, social justice, addiction, dementia, mental health and other difficult life circumstances.
The team are also there for some of the more fun things in life, such as singing, dancing, crafts, sharing cake and having a coffee, with groups ranging from Baby Ballet and Toddle to Singing for the Brain, Memory Cafes and a Thursday club.
With the existing building no longer able to cope with the ever growing range of activities taking place at All Saints, the new community hub, constructed on the site of the current church, will provide improved access and more space, including dedicated storage areas for organisations such as the Foodbank and Clothes Bank.
Specific features include a new sanctuary space, a spacious community cafe, a community hall, a sensory garden designed for those living with dementia, a changing places facility for people with profound learning disabilities, as well as people with other physical disabilities who often need extra equipment and space. There will also be a teaching kitchen, small meeting rooms, and conferencing facilities.
This will enable the team of volunteers and partner organisations to host even more local groups and organisations, and support more vulnerable people in the future.
How is Langarth involved ?
While All Saints Church itself is in the middle of Highertown, it is actually the parish church for Highertown and Baldhu, which includes the villages of Threemilestone and Shortlanesend. This means the people living at Langarth Garden Village will also be part of the parish.
We want to create a vibrant and integrated community at Langarth and that means building positive relationships with existing communities in surrounding areas.
As well as supporting Truro Lifehouse, we have also provided financial support for the projects to expand the Community Centre at Threemilestone and the new sports and wellbeing hub at Threemilestone Primary School, and are currently working with the local community on plans to provide new sports pitches and improve the centre of the village.
So what happens next ?
While the church has already secured a large amount of the money it needs for Truro Lifehouse, it still needs to raise further funding to enable the project to go ahead.
Volunteers from the church have been hard at work raising money through a range of activities, from coffee mornings, cake bakes and quiz nights, to singing, sewing and bell ringing.
Others have taken part in charity golf tournaments and run marathons in aid of the project. People can also make donations for specific projects, such as the sensory garden, or browse through the project’s online catalogue.
Further information on Truro Lifehouse, including details of how you can donate, is available on the project’s website : https://www.asht.org.uk/truro-lifehouse.html
Truro Lifehouse is a fantastic example of the voluntary sector, faith community and the public sector working in partnership for the wellbeing of our “ great little city” and we are delighted that Langarth is playing a key role in the project.
