Read about the Latest activties of our community projects and legacy charities over at: https://preview.mailerlite.io/emails/webview/761012/184377760883410304?fbclid=IwY2xjawRJ3n9leHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETA3VTVEVHNJMXZMSG9Hd1ZWc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHiEhZ-PmUHTE8XgvnGdy8n0aTWrJwH878A_0Fi9nliHhyVoPTvdqfbcz8ec6_aem_zt3f89mbV2w_MY0bXMcrXg
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Three years ago, Havens Community Hub joined forces with Hillcrest to help the Hillcrest Centre overcome tough financial challenges, exacerbated by the pandemic. Together, we were determined to bring the Centre back as the beating heart of the community.
One of our first steps was reopening the much-loved community café, a place for everyone to connect, enjoy fresh food, and share good times. With Havens’ support, hundreds of free meals were provided to those in need, and we worked hand in hand with Hillcrest to create a welcoming space. The café is now a lively hub, thanks to the dedication of Havens volunteers, Hillcrest Trustees, and both sets of staff. It’s thriving- serving affordable, delicious food to locals, hirers, and visitors.
Now the Hillcrest Centre are ready to take the reins, ensuring the café continues to shine. We’re excited to see Hillcrest lead the café into its next chapter, keeping it as a treasured asset for the community.
The transition will happen by the end of April. Meanwhile, Havens will continue to provide supported morning meals for rough sleepers at the café until Havens moves to a new location to lead a vital initiative delivering trauma-informed support for people in crisis locally. The Hillcrest Centre will keep the café buzzing with lunches, bookings, and event refreshments.
We’re looking forward to what’s next and will keep sharing updates as our projects grow. Here’s to a brighter, more connected future for everyone!
We are so grateful for our wonderful volunteers, who work tirelessly throughout the year, through every season, to reduce waste and support our community. They are the beating heart of our projects, and we simply couldn’t do this without them.
Our Food Volunteers even continued collecting over the Easter Bank Holiday weekend, gathering hundreds of surplus items, including mountains of hot cross buns! To say a big thank you, we made sure each volunteer went home with a well‑deserved chocolate treat.
Thank you, Volunteers - you make everything possible.
Havens Community Hub has created an Amazon Wishlist to support our project, Homeless in the Havens. The items on this list are essential pieces of emergency equipment that help us support people who are rough sleeping, insecurely housed, or experiencing homelessness when they reach us.
If you’re able to purchase & donate an item, we would be incredibly grateful- every contribution makes a real difference.
Donate here: https://bit.ly/HavensHomelessSupport
Havens Food Cooperative are looking for Volunteer Drivers to join our team and assist with Surplus Food Collections. We have afternoon and evening collection routes available in various locations taking just 1-2 hours a week! We reimburse volunteers mileage and are flexible when it comes to scheduling, whether you would like to commit to a route once a week, or would like to offer time on an ad-hoc basis.
For more information on how to get involved, please email:
havensfoodmanager@gmail.com
In April 2026 the Havens Food Cooperative Project reached yet another significant milestone in food waste prevention and redistribution. Since the start of the project over £2 million worth of surplus food has been collected and redistributed! Through its daily community pantry and pop up pantry initiative, a team of nearly 50 dedicated volunteers, and partnerships with 21 local stores, the project continues to fight food waste while supporting individuals and families experiencing food insecurity across the Havens area.
To mark this milestone, Havens Food Cooperative hosted a celebration event bringing together the many people who make this work possible- including volunteers, supporters, partner organisations, funders, and local dignitaries such as Deputy Lord Lieutenant David Allam and Karen Allam, Deputy Mayor of Peacehaven Aimee Harman, Mayor of Seaford Maggie Wearmouth, Mayor of Newhaven Kim Bishop, and councillors from Peacehaven, Seaford, and Newhaven.
The celebration also looked ahead. Havens Food Cooperative remains committed to expanding its reach, rescuing even more food, and continuing to strengthen the local community through its actions.
A big thank you to @newhavenfc who collected supplies for us at their latest event!
We really appreciate the support from the team, family & friends!
Our volunteer team over at Havens Food Cooperative are absolutely amazing.
They are collecting from our partnered stores 7 days a week, 364 days a year.
Over just one week our team will visit the stores over 110 times and collect more than 3 tonnes of food, to redistribute it back to the community, supporting those at risk of food insecurity locally and preventing waste to protect the environment!
#havensfoodcooperative #partneredstores #shops #charity #community #havenscommunityhub #support #volunteer #volunteers #volunteering
The wonderful volunteers in our community café- Havens Connections Café have been busy this week making some delicious sweet treats!
Angelique has made some amazing Nutella & biscoff pastries and Julia has whipped up a biscoff and caramel cheesecake with homemade ice cream.
Come enjoy a sweet treat and a warm welcome!
Open Monday-Friday 9:15am - 3pm
At Havens Community Hub, we see every day how much a safe, welcoming space and a warm meal can mean to someone who’s struggling. From tackling food insecurity to supporting wellbeing, the Hub is here because of people like you.
By becoming a monthly supporter, you help us plan ahead and be there when our community needs us most. A small regular gift helps provide food, resources & vital support to local people all year round through our projects Havens Food Cooperative & Havens Connections Cafe.
Regular giving = reliable support
It helps us respond quickly when needs rise
It keeps our projects running- providing food & other resources to those at risk
If you’re able to give a little each month, you’ll be making a lasting difference to lives right here in our community. Thank you for supporting us
With each ticket priced at just £1, we receive 50p for every ticket sold, making a real difference together.
Not only do you get a chance to support our cause, but you also have a 1 in 50 chance of winning fantastic prizes, including a grand prize of £25,000!
Don't miss out! Head over to:
to purchase your tickets and help us make a positive impact in our community.
Every little bit helps, and together we can achieve so much! Thank you for your support!
#lottery #fundraising #winner #community #leweslocallottery #havenscommunityhub
The Hub and projects, Havens Connections Cafe and Havens Food Cooperative, has been chosen as a local cause- helping us continue our work reducing food waste and supporting our community.
If you’re a Co-op member, you can support us at no extra cost by selecting us as your chosen cause here:
Choose us as your supported cause here!
#CoopCommunity #SupportLocal #FoodWasteAction #HavensCommunity #FeedingCommunity
Havens Community Hub via its work with the Hillcrest Community Centre, Havens Food Cooperative and Havens Connections Cafe has found itself doing what it does best. Responding rapidly to emerging unmet community needs.
To cut a long story short, there has been a rapid increase in homelessness in the Havens and we are trying to help in an impactful partnership between statutory agencies, local authorities and other charities and groups like ourselves.
We would like to offer a massive thanks to everyone who has offered support and donated items for the homeless or insecurely housed people we are currently trying to help locally.
It is a very complicated issue but something that we needed to address.
Our wonderful community can send items for us to use, if you would like to or are able, by looking at the list.
The community has sent many items from our wish-list to help us bridge the gap between local authority support for rough sleepers / insecurely housed, or vulnerable people, or donated bedding and other essential items.
We have no more room for donated items (clothes/bedding) but items from the Amazon list are still very welcome.
Many people donated anonymously with lovely wishes and words of encouragement.
We are working really hard, in partnership with local authorities and other non-profit organisations, to make a difference locally.
THANK YOU
https://www.amazon.co.uk/hz/wishlist/ls/KZCE94G5LNRE/ref=nav_wishlist_lists_2
Why not visit our Community Café today and sample some delicious treats homemade by our wonderful volunteers.
Cameron has made his super yummy World Famous (if it’s not it should be) Salted Caramel Flapjacks.
If you’re quick you could also get your hands on Angelique’s outstanding Red Onion and Mature Cheddar Cheese Scones.
At just £2 each, you may even want to take a treat home with you.
We are open Monday to Friday 9-15am - 3pm.
We’re delighted to welcome Alison to our café team!
Having recently retired, Alison wanted to give something back to the community, and we’re so grateful she’s joined our volunteer team.
Today she’s been busy in the kitchen, baking this delicious chocolate & orange cake made using surplus ingredients. A perfect example of how surplus food can be turned into something wonderful.
£2.50 a slice, add ice cream or custard for extra sweetness!!
Our Winter edition of Havens Happenings online newsletter is out!
Read all about the latest developments of our community projects: Havens Food Cooperative & Havens Connections Cafe and our legacy charities: Havens Community Cars CIO & Havens Happy Clubs!
View Here:
https://preview.mailerlite.io/.../761012/175229231100331402
Don't forget to subscribe to receive our online news updates quarterly, using the sign up box on our website!
#communitynewsletter #havenscommunityhub #communityprojects #findawaymakeaway
Friday 12th December, Reporters from ITV visited Havens Connections Café, a project of Havens Community Hub to talk about the services the Café has to offer- affordable food and comfort for locals. The Café both acts as a space where people can access a free hot meal, as well as a place where people can connect with others and access information about further services. The service is busier than ever as a result of the ongoing cost of living crisis.
Havens Food Cooperative are delighted to announce that a new pop up pantry is now available in Peacehaven, East Sussex on Tuesday’s and Thursday’s, 9:30am- 2pm, at Kempton House Day Centre, Cavell Avenue, Peacehaven, Sussex, BN10 7NJ.
Pop along and collect some surplus food and make a donation if you can!
This winter the Lewes District Food Partnership is raising funds for local community food projects, including Havens Food Cooperative's Community Pantry, Newhaven Baptist Church Food Bank, Seahaven Community Food Community Supermarkets, and more amazing local food support projects!
To help us tackle food insecurity please donate if you are able, Lewes District Council is providing matched funding of up to £5000 which means -
Your £10 donation is doubled to £20
Your £25 donation is doubled to £50
Your £50 donation is doubled to £100!
Donate here:
https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/support-local-emergency-food-projects-this-winter?fbclid=IwY2xjawOdFtBleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETFoR25CZTU3a2tmMWJBTDRhc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHuy-lgbf7vE5ScRMULg6r3UjIaGY_Q39KxOSlDvDk_fyhexWdeHRrBYiTeHt_aem_Ot2n-OsrBXU0xsu9n9i98A
Thank you for your support!
#winterfundraiser #communityfoodsupport #lewesdistrictfoodpartnership
This winter school holiday break Havens Community Hub are running a Pizza and Pottery session for 11-15 year olds on 22nd December in Havens Connections Cafe.
Fully funded places are available for young people eligible for benefits-related free school meals.
To find out more and book visit: https://eequ.org/book/pottery-and-pizza-with-havens-community-hub-22482?fbclid=IwY2xjawOdFhVleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEexodGgd1WAVOUvZqJuWl00u-Ka13oifTWarC_DW6CHivzuRgIn98FHx2iRh4_aem_b2C1kzuAtp_QQ0cKs1b6Cg
