FAMILY support charity Home-Start Winchester has celebrated moving into bright new offices. 

In January it relocated from Lanterns Nursery to the Carroll Centre in Stanmore, and staff were getting everything ready for a move early in the New Year.

Liz Stannard, service manager, said: “There are so many people we would like to thank, but special mention must go to Steve Maynard who laid new laminate flooring in the main office and built shelves for us, Howdens who provided the flooring, Wickes who gave us £200 worth of goods, Jewsons who provided fencing materials, Brewers who provided paint and our sponsors Utilita, who give us such consistent backing. 

READ MORE: Winchester council confirms upgrades complete at water treatment plant

Hampshire Chronicle: Home-Start Winchester new offices

“We've had such a warm welcome from the Carroll Centre too, which provides a community café, food pantry and soft play area, and we look forward to working alongside them in our work supporting local families.”

Home-Start Winchester chairman Stephanie Durrant cut the ribbon to declare the new offices open at a lunch party that included staff, volunteers and trustees (past and present) as well as Carroll Centre representatives.

She said: “In 2016, Hampshire County Council slashed the number of children’s centres, as a cost cutting measure in the county, from 50 to 11.

“This left Winchester families high and dry, as the nearest council-maintained centre was then in Wickham. The Carroll Centre fought tooth and nail to stay open for families in the city and it has become something of a bastion of support in the local community, which makes it, for us, the perfect fit.”

For more information about the charity, email info@home-startwinchester.org.uk or call 01962 851177.