The Past

The Wick area of Littlehampton has traditionally been one of the most deprived areas of West Sussex. Over the past ten years there has been a tremendous amount of investment in the area from various agencies, which has resulted in a high level of support and activities for young people. For some time the local community had suffered from a bad reputation: high crime rate, high drug and alcohol abuse, low literacy levels – all the usual indicators of a deprived area. Along with other agencies, The WIRE, along with other agencies, worked hard to provide positive activities, friendly faces and a glimmer of hope.

Jon Jolly writes of this time;
“As a team, we’ve always worked with what we’ve got, but sometimes our lack of proper facilities worked against us. I remember when a young woman came to talk to me about being kicked out of home. She had nowhere to stay, and as a meeting was taking place in the office, we had nowhere to talk. We sat out on the street leaning against a damp brick wall, her with a fag in hand, me with a cup of tea shivering in the December air.”

It was soon after this that Arun Community Church inherited the deeds to Wickbourne Chapel, a small church on the estate. The chapel was no longer used and the Arun elders were unsure what to do with the land. The building was far too small for the 400-strong congregation. But it was in a great location for engaging with the community: right on the main road into town. It was this prominent position that prompted SureStart (the Government initiative for 0 to 5-year-olds and their parents) to approach Arun church with a view for redevelopment. They had been given £1.6 million to start a local Children’s Centre, part of the national drive to support pre-school aged children, and had to find a suitable location from which to run their services. The chapel became the only viable option and it wasn’t long before the bulldozers moved in and the building went up.

The Present

The Wickbourne Centre is a modern looking building, only one story high and three times the size of the old chapel, making full use of available space. Through the sliding doors at the front, it houses a main hall, internet cafe, two training rooms, a lounge, public kitchen, a play area, open-plan office space, a creche facility, a 50-place neighbourhood nursery (with industrial kitchen), meeting rooms and a courtyard. Now owned and operated by the church, it is a vibrant and exciting place to be. SureStart have a team running various anti-natal, smoking cessation and parenting groups, plus creches and support for 0 to 5-year-olds.

Today

For more information on Arun Community Church’s activities at Wickbourne Centre please visit our Community Involvement page