ST John’s Almshouse in Sherborne is to get a major makeover – including the creation of a new tea room alongside affordable accommodation.
A joint scheme, involving the Almshouse and Sherborne Abbey, has been revealed which will see space retained for affordable accommodation, with the downstairs of the property become a tearoom.
Other rooms upstairs will also be used for a young peoples’ centre and community group meetings.
The Rector of Sherborne Abbey, Reverend Martin Lee, said: “This is such an exciting opportunity for all of us, offering both accommodation for those who need it, and support for important community projects.
“We will need help to realise our vision and will be looking to raise funds.
“The town has always been very supportive of the Almshouse in the past and we are sure that will be the case again as we move forwards together.”
In March last year, it was revealed residents at the affordable accommodation at the Sherborne Almshouse were being evicted, and 20 jobs made redundant as the facility was ‘no longer sustainable’.
At the time, the Almshouse Trustees vowed to consider all options for the future.
READ MORE: Residents asked to leave and jobs to go at Sherborne Almshouse
And today (July 29), a spokesperson for the Almshouse Trustees said they had “carefully considered a range of options before choosing this path, which they feel is both positive for the town and financially viable”.
Richard Hunt, chair of St Johns’ Almshouse Trustees, added: “It has been a complicated process to get here but this exciting joint new scheme has several benefits, not just in providing accommodation to people who need it, but also in offering a home for the Abbey’s community outreach work and enabling greater public access to our wonderful building.
“This is an excellent opportunity for Sherborne. The need to provide accommodation for local people in financial need remains pressing.
“This joint approach will enable us to provide new accommodation for local people of all ages to live independently in the heart of our town.”
A public meeting for Sherborne residents and all interested parties, to find out more and share their views, will take place at the Almshouse in the coming weeks.
For further details, visit www.stjohnshouse.org.
I am glad to hear there will still be affordable accommodation for local people and hope this will be secure and private if the rest of the Almshouse will be public. I would be interested to hear the ongoing proposals as my Mother spent many happy years there.
I hope there are more plans to lose the chapel within the building.