When you think of this organisation you probably think of the huge Hambridge Road charity shop on steroids that takes donations of furniture and sells good quality secondhand homeware and bicycles at very affordable prices (and sometimes completely free to those in most need) to help alleviate local poverty.
It is that of course, but the Newbury Community Furniture Project is only one part of The Newbury Community Resource Centre. For a start they also run a similar CFP in Basingstoke, the Growing2Gether community gardening project near Kingsclere and a Forest School site in Shaw.
But then there’s all the behind the scenes work they do, offering training, skills development, community support (including a football team) and education and environmentally beneficial activities to a range of vulnerable adults, many of whom are now trained to fix bicycles, assemble furniture and provide customer assistance.
In 2024 alone NCRC provided household goods valuing over £140,000 free of charge to nearly 450 families, saved the local community over £4,000,000 on purchase costs of furniture and electrical items, provided accredited learning for 78 adults and young people with learning disabilities, upcycled 840 bicycles and provided 1,324 beds for the night for rough sleepers.
At the helm of the whole operation is Kelvin Hughes (below) who joined the organisation in 2004 for 6 months and has never left. Surrounding him is a loyal team of trustees, staff and volunteers. And the invaluable support of funders such as Greenham Trust.
All this was poignantly evident at their 25th Anniversary celebration on Tuesday 20 May. Impressively catered by students from Newbury College, guests enjoyed canapes and drinks amongst the lamps, coffee tables, beds and bicycles on the shop floor. We were also given a tour of the back room facilities including, bike workshop, staff rooms and a full kitchen that serves hot lunches for over 40 vulnerable adults every day.
“We don’t do fancy fundraising events,” explained Vice Chair of Trustees Gillian Durrant. “We just want people to come and see the amazing support that we provide to so many people in the community.”
If you would like to support the amazing, but sometimes unrecognised, work the NCRC does they always welcome more volunteers and financial donations. If you run a local company why not chose them as your charity of the year?
Either way they would love to hear from you so contact them here.
More information about Newbury and the surrounding villages can be found in Penny Post’s Newbury Area Weekly News column, updated every Thursday evening and at other times as necessary. This includes news stories, events, information on voluntary and community groups and updates from the town and parish councils.
Top photo credit: NCRC
Above: Penny Locke
