A COMMUNITY centre has been given a funding lifeline after being put on notice it could close within weeks.

Supporters will now have to find alternative funding to keep the centre used for various activities and support groups open beyond the summer as the funding which has supported it is being reduced.

Staff and volunteers at the Together Works Community Hub, in Caldicot, were told last week its funding would end, at the end of March, due to a reduction in the funding available from the UK Government’s Shared Prosperity Fund.

But the centre, which runs activities from breastfeeding classes to a breakfast club for men as well as a foodbank, has been granted a stay of execution as Monmouthshire County Council and the Gwent Association of Voluntary Organisations (GAVO), which jointly run the centre, agreed up to £46,000 will be available as it seeks to become “self-sustaining”.

Sixth form students, aged 16 to 19 from Caldicot School’s additional learning needs unit, run a weekly community cafe Comp Coffee at the centre and are due to be awarded the High Sheriff of Gwent’s community award, recognising their outstanding contribution to the local community next month.

Jill Bond, a county councillor for Caldicot’s West End and a volunteer at the centre, said: “People are shocked and don’t know what to do with themselves as some come in there every day.

“It is such a valuable, wonderful facility that really brings people together and when you walk in you are just overcome by the warmth of the feeling in there.”

The building is owned by Monmouthshire council, which has also met its utility bills since the Together Works project started in 2021, with a full-time manager and three staff employed by GAVO the umbrella body for voluntary organisations across Gwent.

The council has said it couldn’t continue its existing level of funding for Together Works as though the UK Government has extended the Shared Prosperity Fund into the next financial year it has reduced the total allocation.

That has meant Monmouthshire, and other councils across the UK, have seen the amounts available to them reduced during a “transition year” and the council says the amount it has available will reduce by 46 per cent compared to the current financial year.

Cllr Bond said she understood the council’s funding, which is allocated by a partnership board, has been prioritised for work with young people who aren’t in work, education or training.

The Labour councillor said: “A lot of work at Together Works helps people get their confidence back so they are able to get back to work.”

A statement issued by the council and GAVO said both are committed to working together to “secure the necessary funding to manage the transition towards assuring continued access for community groups in the absence of Shared Prosperity Funding”

It also confirmed the £46,000 would be available in 2025//26 “to assist with the transition to a self-sustaining business model” but it is unclear if that cash is required to support a wider range of organisations than simply Together Works.

It also said it is working with GAVO to make sure the building can be used by volunteer groups, the statement said: “MCC and GAVO are exploring options to ensure the building will remain available for existing and future community groups.

“The vibrant community spirit in Caldicot is reflected in the numerous groups actively supported throughout the town. The council and GAVO are committed to helping these community groups and will strive to provide the best possible assistance during this transitional period for any groups impacted by this outcome.

The Shared Prosperity Fund was intended to replace grants previously available from European Union funding as well as making funds available to more places across the UK.