Heene Community Association receives the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service
Heene Community Centre, in Heene Road, Worthing, have been honoured with the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service, the highest award a voluntary group can receive in the UK.
The Heene, a busy thriving Community Centre, is open 7 days a week and offers a wide range of facilities, such as room hire, various leisure classes, an IT Suite and a highly regarded Café, all bringing people together in a modern welcoming environment.
The Heene also hold two fayres for the community during the year, both free entry. The Summer Fayre is on Saturday 22nd June, and the Christmas Fayre is on Saturday 7th December, both events run between 10am and 3pm. There is live music, entertainment, gift and craft stall, tombola, grand raffle, refreshments by Café one22 and lots of fun stalls and children’s activities.
Joanna Barden, Centre Manager, and Kate Henshaw, long-term volunteer and Vice-Chair of Trustees from Heene Community Association attended a garden party at Buckingham Palace in May, along with other recipients of this year’s Award.
Heene Community Association is one of 281 charities, social enterprises and voluntary groups and just 5 in West Sussex and the only 1 in Worthing, to receive the prestigious award this year. The number of nominations and awards has increased year on year since the awards were introduced in 2002, showing that the voluntary sector is thriving and full of innovative ideas to make life better for those around them.
Representatives of Heene Community Association will receive the award from Mrs Susan Pyper, Lord Lieutenant of Sussex later this summer.
Heene Community Association’s Centre Manager, Joanna Barden says:
“I am delighted! It is a wonderful honour for the Centre to be recognised for the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service. I would like to thank every single volunteer for their time, hard work and commitment, as without their efforts this award would not have been possible. They have contributed towards making Heene Community Centre - the heart of the community. They should be very proud of themselves.”
