The work on the build and creation of the Community Shop has continued to progress and everyone can begin to see the evidence of the wonderful transformation taking place on site. This work is continuing and the current plans mean that we estimate that the work on the internal fit out of the Shop counters and shelves will take place sometime around the middle of September. As with all building projects it is always 90% in the preparation and the work that doesn’t always get seen – and a tremendous thanks must go to the Steering Group members and the very many Volunteers from our Community who are working so very hard to get this done and being incredibly generous with your time and energy. THANK YOU!
Progress will continue to be made on the transformation of the Cabin itself, and the aim continues to be to open and start to operate as a Community Shop at some point during this autumn – albeit it that the further external work originally planned will now take place during next year.
To ensure the Community Shop can become a reality, alongside the ongoing transformation of the Cabin, the big focus over the next couple of months will be on the following areas:
Welcoming the Volunteers to work in the Community Shop – the opening and running of the Shop will depend on the creating the team of brilliant Volunteers for the Shop. Work is taking place right now to finalise the shift patterns and rotas for Volunteers and this will mean that the Opening Hours for the Shop can then be set. As it gets closer to an actual opening date there will be welcome sessions arranged to introduce the Volunteers to how the Shop will work in practice. This will also need to take into account the requirements for social distancing and PPE, and we will need to manage any risks or concerns from Volunteers too.
Finding more Funding – as mentioned above, the fundraising for the Shop has already reached the amazing amount of £30,000. But inevitably costs have increased as we have progressed with the work. In order to complete the transformation of the Cabin and set up the Shop to be ready to open this autumn, there is now an urgent need to raise further funds in the region of £4000 and to achieve this quickly over the next couple of months. We are currently progressing with a number of ideas and options for how this can be done.