THE Kingsley Community Association has been given a grant of £5,880 by Hampshire County Council for its community centre activities. Staff at the Kingsley Centre, in Main Road, were pleased to receive Partnership Funding and will use the funds to support community activities and encourage local participation. At her decision day, the county council's executive member for recreation and heritage, councillor Margaret Snaith, agreed to provide £49,539 towards the revenue and project costs of eight community associations. Ms Snaith said: "By supporting these organisations, we are helping them to increase and develop activities for the whole community, from the very young to the very old, maximising their wellbeing and enhancing their quality of place. "Projects listed by the successful community associations in this round of funding include everything from developing an arts leisure group for disabled adults to a new-age kurling club and internet cafe - extremely beneficial and worthwhile activities. "We are pleased to be able to work in partnership with community associations to ensure that they are able to give local people of all ages the opportunity to take part in a range of activities." This year, Kingsley Centre staff plan to develop a series of events to encourage the involvement of local retired people. This starts with a Wimbledon Tea, with scones and strawberries on Wednesday, June 25, between 2pm and 4pm. The centre will continue to provide a series of children's activities over the summer, as well as a youth group and classes in computer skills and gentle exercise. A free session, Computers for Complete Beginners, is taking place on Friday, June 20. In the autumn, the centre will be looking to develop a social group for physically disabled adults, especially those who have recently left school or college. The centre also trains disabled people to develop skills through providing local services, including Kingsley Post Office, the village shop and a cafe. Following recent building work to improve the facilities, the centre is now available to hire for events and classes. Current activities include ballroom dancing, Montessori Children's House, Alton Morris, the Oakhanger Anglers and East Hampshire Carers Support Group. The Kingsley Brownies pack will restart in September. Contact Jane Kincaid, at the Kingsley Centre, on 01420 479000 for information on any of the above activities.
