Astra Hughes
Council: Fareham
Committees:
Activity Timeline
Meetings Attended Note this may include planned future meetings.
67 meetings · Page 1 of 14
Audit and Governance Committee - Thursday, 27th November, 2025 6.00 pm
the Overview and Scrutiny Board of Fareham Council
Executive Portfolio for Leisure and Community - Thursday, 20th November, 2025 1.30 pm
Overview and Scrutiny Board - Wednesday, 29th October, 2025 6.00 pm
Overview and Scrutiny Board - Wednesday, 27th August, 2025 6.00 pm
Decisions from Meetings
12 decisions · Page 2 of 3
Community Fund Application - Southern Domestic Abuse - Fareham Refuge
From: Executive Portfolio for Leisure and Community - Thursday, 20th March, 2025 3.00 pm - March 20, 2025
This report presents an application for funding under the Council’s Community Funding Programme. An application to the Community Fund from Stop Domestic Abuse, the charity that runs the Fareham Refuge, has been received for £2,139 towards the purchase of new furniture and furnishings to update the Refuge’s current living room space. The project includes the provision of new sofas, a dining table set, storage and a children’s bookshelf. Southern Domestic Abuse Service (trading as Stop Domestic Abuse) is a local charity providing services to women, children, young people and men affected by domestic abuse in Hampshire. Clean, fresh and well-equipped refuge spaces in their Fareham Refuge will allow people who need emergency accommodation in the area to feel safe and comfortable, creating a welcoming home feel which is key to supporting families through this difficult time. The average length of stay in the Refuge is 3 months. In the financial year 2023/24 the charity supported 23 women and 52 children at this facility. They currently have 7 women and 10 children staying in the Fareham Refuge. The cost of replacing the furniture is £4,279.98. Stop Domestic Abuse are looking for £2,139 from the Community Fund, with the remainder being funded by Stop Domestic Abuse’s funds allocated for the replacement of furniture in their refuges across the County. Both Cllr K Wiltshire and Cllr L Whittle support Southern Domestic Abuse Service’s application for the Fareham Refuge.
Recommendations Approved
Community Fund Application - Repair Cafe Portchester
From: Executive Portfolio for Leisure and Community - Wednesday, 5th March, 2025 2.45 pm - March 05, 2025
This report presents an application for funding under the Council’s Community Funding Programme. An application to the Community Fund for start-up funding has been received from Repair Café Portchester for £1,363.27 towards basic repair tools and PPE, a PAT testing machine, a sewing machine, administration tools and consumables. Repair Cafes are free meeting places, where visitors can bring their broken items from home for volunteers specialising in repairs to fix, giving a new lease of life and reducing waste. Repair Café Portchester aims to launch on 29th March, with monthly sessions thereafter at Portchester Community Centre on the last Sunday of every month, from 10:30am-1:30pm. There has been an overwhelmingly positive response from the residents of Portchester and there is already an established team of 10 volunteers with diverse repair skills, including a PAT (Portable Appliance Testing) trained volunteer. They have also gained support from experienced Repair Cafes in Portsmouth and Gosport. It is anticipated that the Repair Café will be able to support residents with fixing items such as small household appliances, clothing items and bikes, in turn reducing the amount of waste going to landfill due to their repair activities. For long term sustainability of the organisation itself, the Repair Café will be community-funded through donations from visitors who use the service and introduce a ‘pay it forward’ scheme to ensure accessibility for all. They also hope to introduce a small café element, offering refreshments and additional volunteer opportunities. The estimated start-up cost of this project is £2,339.79. Repair Café Portchester are looking for £1,363.27 from the Community Fund with the remainder being funded through fundraising donations. Both Ward Councillors, Councillor P Nother and P Whittle support the Repair Café’s application. As per their Register of Interests, it should be noted that both are members of the Portchester Community Centre which is the location where the Repair Café will run from.
Recommendations Approved
Community Fund Application - Victory Hall
From: Executive Portfolio for Leisure and Community - Tuesday, 4th February, 2025 4.30 pm - February 04, 2025
This report presents an application for funding under the Council’s Community Funding Programme. An application to the Community Fund has been received from Victory Hall for £10,000 towards a new accessible toilet and additional storage space at the front of the hall. Victory Hall has an existing toilet block, but when the hall is busy access is via going outside into the car park and accessing the toilet via the back door which is not suitable. More storage is also required to store tables and chairs which are currently taking up valuable cloakroom space. The Hall currently has over 1,000 users attending each week, with many being elderly or having mobility issues. Provision of a new accessible toilet would be a real benefit to these users and make the hall a more attractive venue. Better storage would also allow the hall to host more different types of events. Planning permission has been acquired for these works. The estimated cost of the project is £80,000. Victory Hall are looking for £10,000 from the community fund. They have raised £17,500 from fundraising and donations and will use £12,500 from reserves. Victory Hall have also secured a loan of £40,000 from ACRE to be paid back over 5 years. As of 13 January, Victory Hall held £81,685 in their accounts. In the accounting year 1 April 2023 – 31 March 2024, there was an income of £84,711 and expenditure of £69,033. Both Councillor Ford and Councillor Burgess supports Victory Hall’s application.
Recommendations Approved
Community Grant Application - Titchfield Village Trust
From: Executive Portfolio for Leisure and Community - Monday, 13th January, 2025 2.30 pm - January 13, 2025
This report presents an application for funding under the Council’s Community Funding Programme. An application to the Community Fund has been received from Titchfield Village Trust for £3,485 towards the replacement of the emergency exit doors and toilet doors at Titchfield Village Hall. Titchfield Village Trust have just completed a 5-year project to re-roof and refurbish the interior of the Titchfield Village Hall. One of the last remaining parts of this project is the replacement of the fire exit doors and doors to the toilets. These doors are failing resulting in users having difficulty entering and exiting the toilets. The emergency exit doors are not very secure due to past water damage and previous damage which has been repaired as much as possible. A number of groups use the community building, including stitching and crafts groups aimed at over 65s, brownie groups and home school groups for primary school aged children. The total cost of the project is £3,885. Titchfield Village Trust are looking for £3,485 from the Community Fund, with the remainder being funded by Titchfield Village Trust reserves. As of 5 November 2024, Titchfield Village Trust held £1,344.82 in their accounts. In the accounting year April 2022-April 2023, there was an income of £94,410.10 and expenditure of £26,024.72. Both Councillor Miss Harper and Councillor Mrs Hockley supports Titchfield Village Trust’s application.
Recommendations Approved
Community Funding Application - Portchester Community Choir
From: Executive Portfolio for Leisure and Community - Thursday, 21st November, 2024 2.30 pm - November 21, 2024
This report presents an application for funding under the Council’s Community Funding Programme. An application to the Community Fund has been received from Portchester Community Choir for £2,047.21 for the purchase of technology and storage equipment for their Singalong Outreach project. Portchester Community Choir started in 2017 and now has over 70 members. More recently they have received requests from local groups asking if they could take singing to people who cannot attend their performances for groups of 20-30 people. Care homes and groups like Dementia Care Hub have already benefited through their trial sessions and they would like to continue and expand these extremely beneficial outreach performances. This technology and storage equipment would enable Portchester Community Choir to be self-sufficient as currently they use members’ personal equipment which is not fit for purpose. Portchester Community Choir are looking for £2,047.21 from the Community Fund for the purchase of a laptop, portable speaker, printer (to print their song sheets), microphone and headphones plus storage for these items and the song sheets. As of October 2024, Portchester Community Choir held £1,654.20 in their accounts. In the accounting year January 2023 – December 2023 there was an income of £10,401.51 and expenditure of £9,754.63. Both Ward Councillors, Councillor Bainbridge and Councillor D Wiltshire supports Portchester Community Choir’s funding application.
Recommendations Approved
Summary
Meetings Attended: 67
Average per Month: 3.0
Decisions Recorded: 12