Once known as the Bond Street of Essex, the main shopping area of Westcliff-on-Sea is Hamlet Court Road. The much-loved department store Havens, selling homewares, housewares, gifts, perfumes, cutlery and glassware, established a home here for almost 100 years. Havens helped the area to develop into a strong independent retail area, creating places for people from across southeast England to visit, live and work.
But Westcliff declined during the economic recessions of the 1970s and 1980s. When Havens closed in 2018, it was the only independent department store remaining in Southend – an all too familiar story for many of the UK’s changing high streets.
But Mike Nicholson from local charity Age Concern Southend was determined to make sure this Grade II listed building did not remain empty. The building is situated in one of the most deprived parts of Westcliff, and Mike is passionate about using the space to help regenerate the area.
Mike said: “We had this idea of creating a one-stop hub, housing all of the facilities and services needed by local older people, their families and the whole community.
“Nigel and Paul Havens, the owners of Havens, who we have a very good ongoing supportive relationship with, told us they were planning to close because they were earning more from the internet business than the store. Havens wanted to do something good for the community, so that’s how Haven Community Hub was born.”
The Hub experienced delays with obtaining planning consent to convert the listed building for community use. Haven Community Hub eventually opened in 2019, rented to the charity from the Havens family on a 20-year lease.
The community are really proud of the reuse of the former department store and how its place in Westcliff has been preserved. Mike said: “A lot of people have got fond memories of Havens and are delighted that it’s still open to the community. It’s amazing to see so many people who used to come to the Havens shop now use the Hub.”
Serving the community through a diverse offer
The Hub is open to all ages and offers a huge range of activities, including free counselling for older people, choirs, coffee and conversation sessions, tai chi, therapy treatments, and even a charity shop. Its 30 exercise and activity classes are priced at £3 to £10 per session, recognising that people from deprived areas want an affordable offer.
The Hub generates income through a range of services, including a dementia daycare centre which is open five days a week. This provides space for 12 people and offers a high ratio of staff and volunteers to clients. The large cafe is rented out to a local business and offers affordable meals for the community.
Council services are also hosted in the building, including additional practical and emotional support as well as signposting for people living with dementia and their carers.
The Hub recognised the challenges the Covid-19 pandemic brought to how the space was used. Theyadapted to welcome a wider range of people from the whole community.
Mike said: “During the lockdown, when older people couldn’t come out, younger groups could,we started doing things with them and parents. We even ran a seaside circus and kids’ martial arts classes, which are still running today. There’s a whole cross-section of people using this space.”
Their large cafe is often used by local networks, charities and small businesses who otherwise couldn’t afford to access a space like this – including the MS Society, a mother and toddler group, as well as a homelessness support group.
Talking about the incredible impact of the Hub for people’s physical and mental wellbeing, Mike said: “A 92-year-old man told us we saved his life. His wife died and his whole world collapsed. He started coming to us as a volunteer and his whole world changed. People love what we do here – we’ve had people travel from other areas because there’s nothing else like it”
Just the beginning for local regeneration
With around 3,600 people visiting the former department store each month, the rest of Hamlet Court Road has benefited from increased footfall. A central aim of the Hub is the wider regeneration of the area.
Mike said: “Westcliff is following other parts of Southend, it’s really changing. We believe the Hub is pivotal to this happening and that it has already made a huge impact to the area. A lot of people have said that while they’re at the Hub, they visit other shops, cafes, restaurants and pubs along Hamlet Court Road. There used to be quite a lot of empty shops here when the area started declining. There are now very few, if any.”
Age Concern Southend is keen to secure the long-term future of the Hub on Hamlet Court Road. They hope to secure funding from the Community Ownership Fund. The continuation of some form of funding for community ownership is really important to the charity and would release the funds they currently spend on rent. Mike said: “Failure to obtain a grant from the Community Ownership Fund would make it very difficult for the charity to raise the £1.2 million needed to acquire the Havens building. Under the terms of our lease, our rent could also increase to up to £150,000 per year. This would affect our financial sustainability and may lead to the Hub sadly being closed.”
Five thousand people recently supported their bid to the fund, including the national High Street Taskforce, who said the project was a fantastic example of repurposing a retail building and local regeneration. Haven Community Hub is now part of a Westcliff initiative called Hamlet Court Calling, which is supported by the High Street Taskforce and Southend City Council. The initiative, which brings together traders, residents and community groups, also regularly hosts their meetings at the Hub.
Learn about the communities reimaginig vacant department stores in their communities in our latest report Department Stories.
