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A new website has appeared over the weekend in Wivenhoe, explaining more about the aims and background of the Wivenhoe Community Trust. This is the registered charity that has ambitions to purchase the St John’s Ambulance Building along Chapel Road, and renovate the structure so that it is able to use the space as a community resource.

It is encouraging to see that the plans are now appearing open and transparent. The Trust has been very active in coming up with a future use for the building for many months. Explaining these in more detail online makes the process more transparent and accountable.

Let’s start first by finding out who is behind the WCT:

“Chairman: Brian Sinclair, Vice Chairman: Peter Hill, Secretary: Tim Sherwen.

We are a small group of people who have come together to try to acquire the St John Ambulance Hall. We have the funds to buy it. We want to run the Hall as a charity, providing a place that can be hired for meetings, for family occasions, for exhibitions of different sorts by painters and craftspeople, for showing Wivenhoe Memorabilia, for lectures, for smaller musical events and entertainment, and as a much needed rehearsal space for different bodies.”

These are well known names around the town, with many years of combined civic activities between them. Brian currently sits on Wivenhoe Town Council and is a former Mayor. Peter is also a former Cllr and Mayor, with a history of implementing local projects in the town. He was personally responsible for putting the Wivenhoe Encyclopedia online, as well as his generous work with the local Scout group and the almshouse charities.

The vision for the St John’s building is explained by the WCT as follows:

“Imagine the small hall in Chapel Road being owned by Wivenhoe for Wivenhoe. It would be the first, and only building in Wivenhoe, to belong to the community through a registered charity. This charity is called the Wivenhoe Community Trust (charity no. 292693). Of course there are many other buildings that are owned by various sporting and other organisations which can be hired. But have you tried to hire one? Is it available when you want it?”

This is a decent point. We often seem overrun with local venues: The William Loveless Hall [where else?] The Nottage, the Phillip Road Centre, the Scout hut, The Bookshop Shed, the Cricket Club, the Sailing Club, the football club, the Methodist Hall and the Congregational Hall. Fine though these may be, none of them are managed by a community registered charity.

So far so good. But all of this community management of buildings isn’t delivered by a magical sprinkling of dust from the Wivenhoe Pantomime fairy. What of the costs?

“Yes, it needs doing up, but it is structurally sound. It needs new electrics, better lighting, new toilets and kitchen, perhaps even a new roof and definitely a coat of paint. We have a fully costed budget for all this work. It is not as much as one might think, especially if we don’t make any structural alterations.”

All donators to the previous Engine Shed project have been contacted. It has been agreed that these funds will now be put to use in helping the WCT to secure its aims. The Trust believes that the weekly overheads can be kept low:

“The basic running cost of the building will be an incredibly low £25 per week as it will be run by a charity. On top of this will be the cost of electricity, cleaning etc that will come from it being hired out.”

But a building is nothing without consideration for the social space within. This is adequate, but rather limited once you step inside the Victorian structure. The Wivenhoe Pantomime won’t be about to switch venues from up the road at the Loveless Hall, but it is a space that is sufficient for community use by many different organisations within the town. WCT suggests:

“Club and Society meetings of any sort, lectures and other educational events, a Wivenhoe History group, yoga, keep fit and other similar physical fitness groups, children’s parties, family celebrations, exhibitions by local artists and craftspeople, small musical events, dance rehearsals, performance rehearsals and stage and scenery construction.”

The building needs a use, and sooner rather than later if the costs are to be kept down. With a planning application by the celebrated local potter Pru Green having been turned down by the Planning Committee of Colchester Borough Council last October, WCT clearly believes that the future lies with a community owned usage of the existing structure.

Ah, but wait! What’s this?

“Right now another party has extended their option to buy it subject to planning consent being obtained. Their first attempt to get their plans to demolish the building and replace it with a two storey, flat-roofed building of modern design which was refused.”

Pru Green has re-submitted her application for the:

“Demolition of the superstructure of existing St Johns Ambulance building and erection of two storey building of mixed use C3 Residential and D1 Gallery/Studio.”

The reason that the original application was refused was based around three concerns from the Planning Committee:

(i) the loss of community space provided by the existing St John’s building,

(ii) the impact on the neighbouring property and

(iii) the impact on a neighbouring tree.

It will be interesting to see how these three points are addressed once the application is inevitably called in by one of our Borough councillors, and put to the Planning Committee to consider yet again.

I blogged back in October after the original application was turned down:

“The emphasis now switches over to the Wivenhoe Community Trust, the local group that wants to keep the St John’s Ambulance building as a community space. This has been a planning issue that has divided local opinion. With a decision now made by Colchester Borough Council, expectations will be high for Wivenhoe Community Turst to deliver.”

Whatever your view on the future of the building, it is to be applauded that the Wivenhoe Community Trust has now stepped forward and made available the plans. Openness and transparency from all viewpoints on this highly sensitive hyperlocal matter is what is needed right now. Conversation and co-operation with those with an interest in the building can only be good for the long-term benefit of Wivenhoe.

If you want to make a comment about the proposed demolition of the building - either for or against - you can express your views over on the Colchester Borough Council planning site.