Hethersett a norfolk village on the web

A ladies pamper evening organised by Hethersett Jubilee Youth Club proved popular despite the bad weather and will be repeated on June 11^th when the organisers are hoping the snow will have gone!

“We were very pleased to make £139.42 and a big thank you must go to all those who braved the snow,” said club chair Gillian Saunders. Tickets for the June Pamper will be £3 in advance and £3.50 on the door.

The youth club is also organising an Easter fun event on March 27^th to include face painting and an Easter Egg hunt. This will be followed by a treasure hunt in the village on 10^th July which will end with a barbecue. The busy fund-raising programme will also include a quiz evening on 25^th September.

“We are very pleased with the way things are going at the moment, averaging 16 young people on Wednesday evenings. There are spaces available for youngsters aged between 11 and 14. We are also looking for a few more volunteers to help once a month with the club,” Ms Saunders said adding that the club’s annual meeting will be held on March 9^th.

The club is also looking for a cleaner and booking secretary. Further details on all the events and other matters is available from Gillian Saunders on 01953 607566.

Date Set for Re-opening

June 2009

Hethersett Jubilee Youth Club has taken a number of major steps towards re-opening its doors.

The club is looking to a grand re-opening on 26^th September and have already lined-up BBC personality Julie Reinger to carry out the honours.

“We are at the stage where we have tenders from the builders and we hope to start building work subject to funding and finalising the lease with Norfolk County Council in early July,” said club official Gillian Saunders.

The club is still £9,000 short on funding, however, and so fundraising will continue along with applications for further grants.

Once re-opened it is hoped the club will initially have an after school club and a junior club and eventually a senior club as well as an Internet café.

“All this will depend on volunteers coming forward to help with the running of the activities and to join the committee,” Gillian Saunders added.

Anybody willing to help can contact Gillian Saunders on 01953 607566.

Auction Boosts Funds

January 2009

Hethersett Youth Club’s plans to re-open in a refurbished headquarters in Back Lane are continuing to gather pace through a number of fund-raising events.

An auction of promises event before Christmas raised over £600 and future fund-raisers include a Quiz and Chips evening at Old Hall School on 14^th March and a slides of old Hethersett evening in the Spring.

“We are well advanced with our stage one fundraising and have applied for planning permission to carry out the building alterations,” said club chairman Colin Wilson.

Alongside the proposed building improvements the club is looking for volunteers to run activities once it re-opens.

Cheque Presentation For Youth Club

Three local charities have benefited from a new community scheme launched by Waitrose.

Throughout the country the supermarket chain is giving away £1,000 each month to community groups.

The first three groups to benefit at Wymondham Waitrose are Wymondham Town Football Club, Hethersett Jubilee Youth Club and the Wymondham Community Responders Team.

A special presentation evening was held at Waitrose Wymondham when the three “good causes” received cheques and gift vouchers based on the number of votes received from customers over the period of a month.

The Waitrose Community Matters scheme sees shoppers receiving a token at the checkout. This they can place in one of three boxes to vote for the charity of their choice. The more tokens a cause gets, the bigger the donation they receive. Each month the public can also nominate a good cause with Waitrose’s Partner Voice Forum picking the final three – all of whom are then guaranteed a donation.

At the first Wymondham presentation, Wymondham Community Responders received a cheque for £490, Hethersett Jubilee Youth Club a cheque for £280 and Wymondham Town FC vouchers for £230 which will be used to provide refreshments for visiting teams. The Jubilee Youth Club money will go to the fund already set-up to re-launch the Hethersett based youth club and the responders’ cheque will help with their work as emergency first aid responders ahead of ambulance arrivals.

Shoppers are already voting for the next three charities which are the Wymondham Priory Garden Bowls Club which is a social bowls club for those over the age of 55, the Wymondham Leg Club which is a partnership between community district nurses and the NHS to provide support for people suffering from leg related problems and Hethersett Society for their work in producing a booklet researching into the history of the village war memorial.

Towns and villages covered by the monthly Wymondham Waitrose donation include Wymondham, Attleborough, Hethersett, Bunwell, Barnham Broom, Hingham and Great Ellingham.

Youth Club Appeal is Launched

MP for South Norfolk, Richard Bacon, cuts the cake to launch the £75,000 youth club appeal.

Hethersett Jubilee Youth Club launched a £75,000 appeal to rejuvenate and re-launch itself at a special open day in the Back Lane premises.

The morning attracted well over 100 people and, within minutes of the opening, over £16,000 had been pledged in grants and donations. This total will be added to by money raised on the day from stalls, raffles and refreshments. A 200 club was also launched.

MP for South Norfolk Richard Bacon was present to cut a special launch cake in the shape of a money box pig.

At present the hall stands empty and unused. Plans include updating the building before re-launching it as a vibrant part of the community to include youth and after school clubs.

“We were delighted at the turnout for the open day with support from right across the local community. It really gives us the boost to keep going with our plans,” said centre vice-chairman Gillian Saunders.

Plans to renovate the building include new toilets for the disabled plus the updating of present facilities, the introduction of more natural light and improved kitchen facilities and the setting up of an internet cafe. It is hoped eventually to run a youth club on two nights a week alongside after school and holiday clubs.

The fund was given an immediate boost by the news that the Geoffrey Watling Trust has given £15,000 to the project. The charity was set-up in 1993 to distribute funds to worthy causes in Norfolk and the Waveney Valley. The Trust’s work continues despite the death of its philanthropist founder in 2004.

The next step will be to draw up detailed plans, seek planning permission and then look for a builder. There is no time scale on the work at present with chairman Colin Wilson and committee member Sarah Reynolds both stating at the open day that the aim is to “get going as soon as possible.”

Richard Bacon was full of praise for the plans:

“What has been achieved is a tribute to everyone’s enthusiasm and energy. I am aware that the hall has had its ups and downs over the years and its success depends on the community playing its part.

“We hear so much today about the negative side of young people but I find a tremendous motivation and interest amongst youngsters who want to be part of what is happening. I would urge everyone to make this project happen and help to provide such a vital resource for the community,” he said.

Local youngsters have already been canvassed to find out what they would like from a new youth club. Many of their answers were written on a special board on display at the open day. These included barbecues, Sky TV, decorating the hall in bright colours, open days, cooking, badminton, fancy dress parties and ice and roller skating.

The group is still looking for volunteers to join its committee and for help with fundraising. When the club is up and running even more volunteers will be needed to staff it alongside a youth worker.

Anyone willing to help with the new scheme can contact Gillian Saunders on 01953 607566 or Colin Wilson on 01603 810604.

Read a pdf file of Sarah Reynolds' opening speech at the open day by clicking here.

News Update from Colin Wilson Chair of the Youth Club

May I take this opportunity to thank all those who came to our recent open day on Sept 20th to show their support, to help us out on the day, to supply us with an abundance of home cooked cakes and generous donations of raffle prizes. The event raised over £530. We were also informed on the day of a successful grant application from the Geoffrey Watling Trust of £15,000 and a donation of £1000 from the directors of Chestnut Nursery School. My thanks also to RC Snelling Charitable Trust, Rosedale Funeral Home, Tas Valley Fire Protection Services and all those private donators who made donations to our refurbishment fund prior to the presentation, totalling over £750. We were overwhelmed by the support shown and cannot thank you all enough. Further details and pictures are available on the Hethersett Website and can be accessed by clicking here

The Jubilee Youth Club hall was built by the community, for the community and further fundraising is still required before we can start the refurbishment of the youth club hall. We are setting up a 200 Club with monthly cash prizes to help us achieve our target. This is an important part of our fundraising, so if you wish to help us by joining those already taking part, please give me a ring on 810604 or email me by clicking here

We are planning a Auction of Promises for Friday 5th December at the youth club hall, and a Quiz and Chips night in the near future, so please watch out for details. . If you are able to offer an item to be auctioned or can offer to do something which someone would buy, such as an hours housework, some ironing, making a cake or can offer lessons in something eg. dancing or singing, please contact me as above.

Your continued support is very important to us.

Colin Wilson

Previous Stories

An appeal has been launched to raise £75,000 to rejuvenate and re-launch Hethersett Jubilee Youth Club.

At present the hall stands empty and unused because the existing facilities are no longer suitable for today’s youngsters and the building doesn’t meet the requirements of current legislation.

A committee is looking to upgrade the facilities and re-open the club to young people of the village.

“We know there is a need for the club to operate as we have spoken to young people and also to the local Police Community Support Officer. To enable this to happen we need to raise £75,000 which seems a huge mountain to climb. We need more volunteers to join our committee and help us to fund-raise,” said committee member Gillian Saunders.

When the club is up and running even more volunteers will be needed to staff it alongside a youth worker.

The group is in the process of looking into grants from the likes of the National Lottery and the John Jarrold Trust and is also appealing for donations from individuals, local companies and shops.

“The sooner we can raise the money, the sooner the builders can start work and the sooner the young people will have somewhere to go in the evenings which is warm and safe and where they can meet with friends and have a good time,” Gillian Saunders added.

The group is also looking for input from young people who would use the new centre. A special open morning at the existing hall with raffle and cake stall is being held on Saturday 20^th September when the fund-raising campaign will be officially launched and villagers can view plans for the hall.

“We would like to raise some of the money before the open morning and also have an idea of start and finish dates for the work so that we can plan a grand re-opening,” Gillian added.

Anyone willing to help with the new scheme can contact Gillian Saunders on 01953 607566 or Colin Wilson on 01603 810604.

News Update - 11th September , 2008

HETHERSETT Jubilee Youth Club has delivered leaflets to homes in the village ahead of a special open morning when plans for its future will be on show.

The leaflets are entitled “How can you help us?” and advertise the open morning which will run from 10.30 a.m on 20th September at the club premises in Back Lane.

The morning will provide an insight into what is planned at the club and there will also be cakes and refreshments and a raffle.

The club committee are attempting to raise up to £25,000 to update the building. Another £50,000 is likely to be covered by grants.

“I have been involved in the youth club since 1984 and I have received lots of support to re-open the club as a youth centre.

“I have a small dedicated team planning the future, but we do not have the capacity to realise those plans for the benefit of Hethersett and it young people without further help,” said chair of the youth club committee Gillian Saunders.

Plans for the future include an out of school club from 4 until 6.30 p.m and in the school holidays for those aged 10 and over. It is hoped these evenings will include sport, computers, music, games and the opportunity to complete homework as well as chilling out with friends in a warm, friendly and safe environment with trained adults to help organise the activities

The club is also looking for help with running its committee, assisting with fundraising, buying and selling raffle tickets, joining a 200 Club, helping and volunteering for youth club evenings and making donations.