In 1947 a plot of land known as Sands Farm came on the market. The land was conveniently situated in the centre of Ashington and ideal for Horsham District Council to build some much needed council houses and they therefore purchased some of the land on offer to build ‘The Sands’. This left a sizeable piece of land between The Sands and the Parish Church. The village did not have a Village Hall, although there was a Scout Hut in the grounds of the old school in Rectory Lane where social gatherings such as ‘Whist Drives’ were held. It was therefore decided to try to purchase the remaining land with a view to converting some of the farm buildings into a Village Hall and transform the cow shed to provide a kitchen and toilets.
The asking price for this land was the princely sum of £1,500. To help the village raise this money quickly a local business man, Mr A G Linfield, agreed to act as guarantor for a loan. Mr Linfield was the proprietor of Linfield Nurseries and a substantial land owner in the area and with his support the loan was secured. The loan was quickly repaid thanks to various grants and fund raising events.
The Community Centre Trust was formed to hold the land and
buildings in trust for the residents of Ashington. The Trust is managed by a
group of volunteer trustees and a management committee is elected each year at
the Trust’s Annual General Meeting. Initially there were eight trustees drawn
from all various village groups and after sixty years there are now twenty one
trustees and eight observers who represent groups not wishing to be trustees.
The trustees meet approximately five times a year and the very hard working
management committee meet every month and oversee the day to day running of the
trust’s affairs.
The expansion of Ashington in the last decade meant that the
village had started to outgrow both the School and the Village Hall. The new
school was built in Foster Lane in 2000 and thanks to grants and fund raising
etc the new Community Centre was built and opened in November 2003 . The opening
ceremony was carried out by Jimmy Hill the sports personality and television
presenter together with visitors from Ashington, Northumberland.
The original plans also included a small hall and sports pavilion but unfortunately the trust could not raise the funds to carry out the complete project. However the plans still exist and, should the funds become available, who knows what the future may hold.
The village is proud of the new Community Centre and the facilities are constantly in demand for functions, wedding receptions, concerts and other events. Above everything else the principal aim of the Trustees is to ‘Serve the Community’.