CROSSPOINT charity is now eager to get their drop-in centre up and running after planning permission for the Market Place centre was granted by Wiltshire Council.
With just legal matters to be completed, the charity, which supports and serves the local community, plans to have the centre up and running in the next few months.
Dai Davies, chair of Crosspoint said, “It’s all looking very promising and I think everything is proceeding as best it can – really we’re in the hands of the solicitors now. We have been training volunteers and we have been writing all the protocols you need to administer and those things are all in hand. We’ve also got a grant from the area board for some office equipment, so we are well under way.
“We’re probably talking mid-July or August [for opening the centre].”
In the meantime, the charity will be holding an information evening on Friday 8th July from 6.00-8.00pm at Westbury Junior School, which will be a chance for friends and supporters of Crosspoint to get together and hear more about the plans.
Crosspoint’s plans for their Market Place location met concerns from some local traders earlier this year when planning permission was applied for, as they objected to taking a Market Place premises out of potential retail use.
However, Crosspoint has argued that some of the people the drop-in centre will support will be those who are unemployed and need help and advice to get back into work. The centre’s ethos of being a place where people can simply come to chat is another way it says the centre could help encourage people to come into the town centre.
Westbury Town Council discussed the matter at length and offered no objections to the plans, while planning officers have granted permission to the application for change of use of the premises. However, they have stated that a shop window display must be maintained at all times, to prevent the introduction of dead frontage that would harm the vitality and viability of the Market Place.
Crosspoint was founded by a group of people from different churches in the town, who identify problems with social isolation and deprivation in the area. The charity is built on Christian values, and says it seeks to promote the wellbeing of local residents and contributing to the relief of those in need, irrespective of age, gender, sexual orientation, disability, race, or religion. Crosspoint has its own website, www.crosspoint-westbury.co.uk.
