Crawley warm hubs to open up to residents who cannot afford to heat their homes

Crawley Borough Council is setting up warm hubs

The hubs will be opened from November 28 to March 31 at the community centres in Bewbush, Broadfield, Furnace Green, Ifield West, Langley Green and Tilgate.

During a meeting of the cabinet on Wednesday (November 23), leader Michael Jones described how the cost of living crisis was leaving some people facing the impossible choice of ‘heating or eating’.

He said: “We cannot morally stand by and do nothing – and we won’t.

“The concept of warm hubs is to provide a space to residents who cannot afford to heat their homes or are just looking at ways to reduce their bills.

“The warm hubs are available to them as a space to spend time at no cost, thereby giving some relief to pressured incomes.”

Hot drinks will be provided at each hub, free of charge, and council staff will be on hand to offer advice on wellbeing, if needed.

The council’s hubs will run alongside others being managed by the voluntary sector.

Mr Jones said the council would keep an eye on how well each hub was used and adjust things depending on demand.

He acknowledged that the hubs would need ‘significant staffing’, which may impact on other work.

But he added: “This is an important project for the council which sees us supporting our communities through the challenges of the cost of living crisis and I firmly believe that has to be a priority for us.

“Simply put, it’s the right thing to do.”

The warm hubs provided by the council and voluntary sector will be held at:

Broadfield Community Centre: Monday 9.30am-12.30pm & 1pm to 5pm; Tuesday 9am-3.30pm; Wednesday 9am-9pm; Thursday 9am-4.45pm; Friday 9am-5.30pm; Saturday 4.15pm-10pm. Broadfield Library: Monday to Friday 10am-5pm; Saturday 10am-2pm. Bewbush Centre: Monday 9am-5pm; Wednesday 9.30am-11.30am (free shop, fortnightly); Thursday 9am-5pm; Friday 9am-4pm; Langley Green Community Centre: Monday to Wednesday 9am-5pm. West Green Crawley Baptist Church: To be confirmed West Green Charis Centre: Tuesday to Friday 9.30am-4.30pm. Ifield West Community Centre: Monday 3pm-7pm; Tuesday 3pm-9pm; Thursday 3pm-9pm (fortnightly); Friday 3pm-9pm. Tilgate Community Centre: Monday 9am-6pm; Friday 9am-6pm. Furnace Green St Andrews Church, Cornerstone Cafe: Monday to Wednesday and Friday 10am-4pm (term time). Furnace Green St Andrew’s Church, Poppins: Saturday 10am-noon (1st Saturday of each month) Furnace Green Community Centre: Thursday 3pm-9pm; Saturday 9am-noon (3rd Saturday each month); Sunday 1pm-9pm. Crawley Library: Monday to Friday 9am-7pm; Saturday 9am-5pm St John’s Church Love Your Neighbour: Tuesday to Friday 10am-2pm. St John’s Church Warm Space: Saturday 9am-noon.