Who we are

We are a registered charity (no.1199385) that is a one-stop shop advice centre for people with complex problems. The Hub was initiated by the founders of Midhurst Foodbank. Their experience since 2014 demonstrated the need for a place in Midhurst at which people could get face-to face support as many other direct public services have been progressively withdrawn from the area.

The first meeting of Trustees was in June 2021 and the Hub was then launched by Gillian Keegan MP on 25 November 2022.

We are all local volunteers helping local people.

Trustees

The chairmanship will rotate every three years. The current Chair is Chrissie Abbott. Trustee meetings are fully recorded and held at least 4 times a year.

There are seven trustees, who are: 

Chrissie Abbott

Has lived in Midhurst since 1977, is married, and has three adult sons and five grandchildren. She was instrumental in founding Tandem and was the co-founder of Midhurst Foodbank in 2014. She is a Foundation Governor of Midhurst Primary School and an active member of Midhurst Parish Church.

Jeanette Sutton

Was Head of Art at Midhurst Rother College and was a councillor on Midhurst Town Council from 2015 to 2023. She is married and has one adult daughter. She is also a Trustee of the Pest House Charity.

Laura Jandac

Is the owner of The Upholsterer business in North St. and is married with two children. She is well known in the town as a popular businesswoman and is also a Governor of Midhurst Primary School.

Martin Roberts

Worked in London as a secondary school Geography teacher and recently retired as a GCSE Examiner after over 30 years. He is married to Rev’d Jane Roberts (curate at Midhurst Parish Church) and has two daughters and four grandchildren. He is an active member of Midhurst Parish Church.

Mark Purves

Mark is also well known in the town as the former Chair of Midhurst Town Council. He works in the area as a fire officer for West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service. He is currently Chair of Governors at Midhurst Primary school and Trustee to Midhurst Youth Trust.

Dr. James Yeates

Is a qualified vet and manager who is currently the CEO of The World Federation for Animals. Prior to this he was CEO of another charity. James has over a decade of experience in advocacy for animal welfare and spent five years at the RSPCA as its Chief Veterinary Officer. He is currently an adviser to the Government on animal welfare. He is married and has three children.

Reverend Jane Roberts

Bio to follow.

Our values

At their first meeting in June 2021 the Trustees decided that the Hub should be a values driven organisation and that in addition to being non-judgmental and accountable for our actions, we should demonstrate:

  • Kindness

  • Humility

  • Respect

  • Discretion

  • Compassion

Governance

We are a Charitable Incorporated Organisation (CIO) as registered with the Charity Commission.

Our Constitution sets out our Key Purpose or Object as being to reduce social exclusion as the extract below from our Constitution describes:

“To promote social inclusion for the public benefit by preventing people in the Midhurst Area from becoming socially excluded, relieving the needs of those people who are socially excluded and assisting them to integrate into society, in particular by:

 1. Providing advice and assistance to people who are excluded from society, as well as the development of projects aimed at reducing exclusion.

 2. Referring those individuals who are socially excluded to partner organisations.

 3. Establishing a Midhurst Community Forum bringing together the multiplicity of charities, local trusts, local authorities, and others all serving the wider Midhurst area so that common issues and concerns can be shared.

 For the purpose of this clause ‘socially excluded’ means being excluded from society, or parts of society, as a result of one of more of the following factors: unemployment; financial hardship; youth or old age; ill health (physical or mental); substance abuse or dependency including alcohol and drugs; disability; poor educational or skills attainment; relationship and family breakdown; poor housing (that is housing that does not meet basic habitable standards).

 Note: “The Midhurst area” comprises the town of Midhurst and the fifteen rural parishes in the north-west of Chichester district within the County of West Sussex.”

Annual report

The financial year of the Hub runs from April to March. The Hub was first registered with the Charity Commission in June 2022, and its first Annual Report was produced in July 2023, incorporating a financial statement for the 2022/23 financial year. The same pattern will then be followed in successive years.

Policies and procedures

The Trustees have approved the following suite of Policies and Procedures and assigned a  named Trustee to have oversight for each one. These are kept under review annually with review dates attached to the agendas for meetings throughout the year.

The six areas cover:

  • Health and Safety

  • Safeguarding

  • Equalities and Diversity

  • GDPR and data protection (includes client consent)

  • Complaints procedure

  • Volunteer Handbook (incorporates confidentiality agreement)