South Street Launches Crowdfunder to Survive
Isleworth community space faces rising costs including council rent rise
South Street in Isleworth
October 11, 2024
South Street, a community centre in Old Isleworth, has been forced to set up a crowdfunder as rising costs threaten its survival.
It has been operating as a café for over 14 years but fairly soon realised that it needed to make it space available for the whole community.
It currently runs two book groups, a book and jigsaw exchange, a colouring club, a knitting group and mindfulness and meditation sessions. It also hosts Green Party meetings once a month, provides an area for local artists to exhibit and shelf space to local makers to sell their work.
It was also behind the Old Isleworth Market and took on the lease of number 13 Shrewsbury Walk so that Manu could open a greengrocers and helped Camomile Flower Design find a shop to rent in the area. South Street also organises community events on Shrewsbury Walk, Christmas Carols, Jubilee and Coronation celebrations.
Then it started a charity shop which is raising £24,000 a year distributed through vouchers for the greengrocer and to the food pantry at The Bridgelink Centre on the Ivybridge Estate.
It has a 'pay it forward' book in the cafe, and is always here to help and advise the most vulnerable through its links with Community Solutions.
The owner Rowan says that, despite having a solid claim to be the heart and soul of Old Isleworth, South Street is in financial trouble.
A combination of Covid, Brexit and rising energy prices has hit it hard particularly the latter as it is not eligible for grant support.
One other rising cost is rent and its landlord, Hounslow Council, wants to put it up by a third. Pleas for help have gone unanswered.
Putting up prices isn’t an option because its offering would be unaffordable.
The closure of South Street would not mean the end just for the café but also possibly the market, the greengrocer, the charity shop, the Manu vouchers and Christmas Carols.
Click here if you want to support the South Street fundraiser.
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