Thriving charity project in market town near Lancaster raises £35k in just three months to buy new home

In just three months, £35,000 has been raised to enable the Hub to buy Bentham’s former Community Centre and continue its charity initiatives.

Situated in High Bentham, The Bentham Hub is run entirely by volunteers and sells second hand goods for the benefit of others. In just over a year, £43,650 has been raised to help fund local charities.

However in July, Bentham Hub announced that due to circumstances beyond its control, it would have to move and identified Bentham’s Community Centre, a 19th Century Quaker Friends’ Meeting House, as its new home.

When fundraising began, The Hub needed £35,000 to add to the organisation’s own funds to buy the property. It has reached that target thanks to public donations from businesses and individuals, many fundraising events and a grant from Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust. The campaign also received support from local MP Julian Smith who visited Bentham Hub in August.

Bentham Hub co-founder, Lesley Barker, said: “We’ve had a totally amazing three months and never anticipated such a huge level of response. We’ve had donations from near and far and it feels like the whole community is behind us.

“We are delighted to have been awarded a £10,000 grant from Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust which means we now have sufficient funds to buy our new home.”

The £10,000 from Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust is the first grant in its new YDMT grants programme to be awarded in High Bentham.

Mike Appleton, YDMT grants officer, said: “We’re delighted to fund what will be a new home for the highly successful Bentham Hub.”

A comprehensive survey of the property has been done and The Hub has launched Phase 2 of its fundraising campaign to pay for the required work.

“We have lots of development ideas for the building which will form part of our longer term vision,” said Bentham Hub co-founder, Mick Reid.

“However, at this stage we want to get the property into a move-in state. It’s been empty for some time and some remedial work is needed. It’s a dream come true to even get to this stage.”

Donations towards the new Bentham Hub’s can be made at www.gofundme.com/thebenthamhub and at The Hub in Bentham High Street.