THERE have been celebrations this week after it was announced that Cheriton Fitzpaine Community Shop was awarded a grant of £6,600 from the Community Shares Booster Fund to cover consultancy fees and the accreditation of its Community Share Offer.

The committee is working hard to achieve its target of £145,000 to purchase the redundant Methodist Chapel and schoolroom next door to the shop’s life-limited cabin. The panel thought the application was strong and applauded the progress that had been made to date. They were impressed by the evident strength of community engagement and support.

The committee is waiting anxiously to see whether its next application to The Heritage Fund has been successful.
The committee is waiting anxiously to see whether its next application to The Heritage Fund has been successful. (Cheriton Fitzpaine Community Shop)

The committee says this is borne out by the fact that many are prepared to give more than practical support to ensure that their thriving community shop will survive, and since November, an astounding £73,304 has been pledged in the form of shares and donations.

After three well-attended public meetings setting out detailed plans for the purchase and renovation of the Methodist buildings, a good percentage of the village population responded to the stark reality that the cabin currently housing the shop is coming to the end of its lease and will disappear in December 2027, with nowhere else to go.

When the only shop in Mersham, Kent closed recently, a local said: “A village without a shop is just a place to live” and it seems that this message has struck home in Cheriton Fitzpaine.

Shop committee: Wendy Handcock, Simon Block, Kevin (manager), Lyn Porter, Julie Chapple and Mike Handcock.
Shop committee: Wendy Handcock, Simon Block, Kevin (manager), Lyn Porter, Julie Chapple and Mike Handcock. (Cheriton Fitzpaine Community Shop)

With around 40 volunteers and a part time paid manager, the business has proved itself over the past few years and goes from strength to strength, with plans to widen the range of stock held and provide more than just a shop.

The proposal is for an enlarged retail floor, a dementia-friendly café, a display area for arts and crafts, a heritage corner for local history and a friendly meeting place for small-group activities in the schoolroom.

With a good cup of coffee or tea and cakes, folk could be free to play scrabble or chess, complete jig-saws, play chess, knit, repair items, swap news, or work on their laptops. It could be a safe space for teenagers.

A skittles evening at The Half Moon Inn was attended by around half the volunteers earlier this month.