Newydd Housing Association alongside Canna Developments are supporting the local community by donating £1500 to Friends of St Canna who run the Old School Room, a community centre in Llangan, Vale of Glamorgan.
The Old School Room (OSR) was used as the church vestry but became almost derelict until a group of local people decided to take it over on a lease from the church and refurbish it. After a lot of fundraising the facility became the focal point of village life in Llangan, bringing the community together.
Before COVID-19 several clubs met at the centre; from yoga clubs to book clubs. Fundraising events were also held at the centre in order to raise money to maintain the building. These included coffee mornings, bake sales, concerts, and fayres – all of which were very popular within the community. In addition to this, the OSR Committee bought a marquee that was used for an Annual Dog Show, Garden Party and was hired for private events by the locals. However since the pandemic, the community group have struggled to raise the income to maintain and repair the building.
Shannon Maidment, Community Regeneration Coordinator at Newydd said, “Newydd’s vision is to provide affordable homes and support sustainable communities with excellent services to tenants and customers. We ensure that all of our new developments support the local community in which they are to become a part of. We were made aware that the Friends of St Canna were actively fundraising as a result of the loss of income caused by COVID-19. We are delighted to support them with this donation to sustain this facility for the whole community during this challenging time.”
The monetary donation from Newydd and Canna Developments will go towards the general upkeep of this much needed community facility. Both parties wanted to support this project as it tackles social isolation by facilitating activities that encourage people to be active and connected in their communities.
Howard Pearson, Chairperson of Llangan Church and the Old School Room said, “I am delighted to accept this grant on behalf of the Old School Room and St Canna’s Church. The current pandemic has greatly reduced the income needed to sustain the fabric of these usually well used buildings and this money will compensate for some of this shortfall, primarily funding some emergency repairs and maintenance.”
Rhodri Crandon from Canna Developments said, “Canna Developments is extremely pleased to help the Friends of St. Canna with the funding of repairs and maintenance associated with St. Canna’s Church, Llangan. The company’s name after all derives from the church and village!”
Newydd Housing Association, in partnership with the Vale of Glamorgan Council, are developing the highly sustainable affordable homes using private and Welsh Government Innovative Housing Programme and Social Housing Grant funding. Cwrt Canna Ltd will develop and manage the adjacent commercial units to form a rural business hub in collaboration with Creative Rural Communities.
Photo: Left to right, Rhodri Crandon, Howard Pearson and Shannon Maidment.
