The Corner House is now home to a new community hub for Charlbury called the Cornerstone. Set up by St. Mary’s Church with help from the Community Centre, it encompasses the expanded Give & Take, the Learning Café and the Place to Talk.
Expanding the Give & Take with the help of Christine Elliott and apple sharing, will allow Charlbury residents to have a year-round place to share excess local produce (look out for our daily list of fruit and veg) and continue to support our community larder. St Mary’s will continue to manage financial donations to allow purchases of fresh food for local families.
The Learning Café will be run in conjunction with the Community Centre and the Youth Team. Help on homework can be provided year round and, until the library opens again, the Cornerstone plans to host Story Time Mornings for younger children. We also have plans for the Learning Café to be a place for lifelong learning.
A Place to Talk will bring advisory services to Charlbury in the next few months. The Cornerstone is working with Citizens Advice Bureau and other service groups to give them a place to meet with Charlbury residents.
We are grateful to the Corner House for making space for the Cornerstone. The Youth Team did a great job repainting the former library space, and we are cobbling together furnishings and making bunting to add to the ambience of this new community space. We’ll be open Monday to Friday from 10am to 1pm in August and increase hours to 10am to 3pm in September.
We believe the Cornerstone can provide a base for all of Charlbury which would enable us to build a stronger community, both for those who give and those who receive. If you would like more information on the Cornerstone, please contact us at Cornerstone@stmaryschurch.co.uk, or call us on 819253.
Thanks to everyone for helping!
If you live in Charlbury and are a vulnerable person, or in self-isolation for any reason, or struggling in any way, we can help you. We have identified a group of 200 kind Charlbury residents who have offered to help. Please ring 01608 811878 and tell us what you need. If you can’t get through on this line, you can try 01608 819253 (weekdays only) or email your request to info@charlburycommunitycentre.org.uk.
Help can include, but is not excusively:
Are there any other suggestions of what we could offer to help people? If you have ideas, please email info@charlburycommunitycentre.org.uk
This service is free, though of course you will need to pay for your goods at some point. We can build up a tab for you and you can pay it later either in person or by ringing up and paying by card over the phone, or by transferring money to our bank account, or by sending a cheque. Under no circumstances should cash be exchanged at the door. Our volunteers will not have any contact with you unless absolutely necessary, to minimise risk to both them and you. They will leave goods outside your door at an arranged time.
The telephone line is manned 9am-5pm every day.
If you wish to volunteer to help in this, or any other way, please email Daniela: info@charlburycommunitycentre.org.uk
Help with GardeningAre you struggling to mow the lawn and trim the hedge? Our youth team can help with basic gardening tasks over the summer for £8 an hour. If you are interested, please contact info@charlburycommunitycentre.org.uk
The team at the Charlbury Community Centre has a fund available to build small, raised beds in Charlbury resident’s gardens/back patio areas so local people can grow vegetables (and flowers!). The aim of the project is to:
• build something positive for self-isolated, socially distanced and others
• provide summer employment for Charlbury youth
• build enduring relationships within our community
The Centre staff will manage the project and will provide labour and supplies such as wood frames, liners, top soil, seeds, seedlings and watering cans.
We estimate that with our current funds we could create and help maintain about 30 Veg Patches employing 10 to 15 youth. If there is greater demand for veg patches we will try to raise additional funds. We will not charge for the veg patches but will accept donations.
The beds are “pop-up” ones so, though welcome to keep it, if you ever want it taken away because you no longer use it, you can contact the Community Centre and someone will come and remove it.
Many thanks to the Ditchley Foundation, who have donated the topsoil.
If you or someone you know would like to have a veg patch in your garden or patio area, please contact info@charlburycommunitycentre.org.uk . We are ready to go now and the growing season is upon us, so please don’t delay – get in touch and we can discuss your options!
Normally Styans come to Charlbury Farmers Market every 3 months, but now we are lucky they are making up veg boxes for collection in Charlbury every Saturday afternoon from outside the Community Centre. Bring your own bag to transfer produce from the box AND keep your social distance at all times. To reduce contacts maybe arrange to collect for friends and neighbours. Watch your emails on Saturday morning – you will be allocated a time to come and pick up your veg. Click here for fuller and regularly updated information.
You can also order some products from Bibury Trout Farm, honey from our own Halcyon Farm and various other products.
Order your goods from StyanFamilyProduce.co.uk by 10pm previous Thursday and pay online.
House-bound and need your box delivered? Call us on 01608 811878 and we’ll arrange for someone to bring it to you.
Boxes are Large or Small and there are optional extras like beetroot, Jerusalem artichokes, honey, and Worcestershire tomatoes grown using heat from a biomass boiler.
Organised by Charlbury Green Hub in conjunction with Janet Burroughs from Charlbury Farmers Market, Nikki Rycroft from Patients Participation Group, and Tanya Stevenson from the Community Centre.
The phone number is 01608 811878 and it is manned 9am-5pm seven days a week. You can ring us for practical help, shopping etc. We have a big team of volunteers who can help you.
