The entire team at All Saints' Church in Whitstable is celebrating after securing £40,000 in funding from Valencia Communities Fund for two projects. One to create a disabled toilet in the church hall and the other resurface pathways around the church itself. The hall is extensively used, Monday to Friday, early to late, by a very wide ranging set of users.
Although there was a small and pretty ancient disabled toilet in the hall it did not have room for larger electric wheelchairs making it incredibly inconvenient for the many wheelchair users that visited the hall. This was replaced by a larger and more spacious amenity which will benefit all users. Similarly, the pathways were worn, uncomfortable and, in places, potentially dangerous to not only wheelchair users, but the general public as well.
Resurfacing the paths has made the churchyard a much safer environment and ensured that the churchyard, which is the second largest in the whole of East Kent, is now a much more attractive place for those who mourn and who wish to visit loved ones graves. Funding was also used to create a ramp for wheelchair users to access the new toilet.
The Rev'd Simon Tillotson (below) said "We will forever be grateful to Valencia Communities Fund and I warmly encourage other community or religious groups to apply for funding if they are providing a service to their local communities. Thank you to Valencia Communities Fund!"
