Passfield’s Treasured village store is saved.

Following the loss of its Post Office, Passfield’s Treasured village store was in danger of closure. The owners John and Susan Wood feared they would have to shut shop after they lost their long battle to save the Post Office in February this year.

In a bid to save the village shop, owners (owners John and Susan Wood) came up with new ideas to help keep the shop profitable. The ideas mainly centred around local produce with a plan to have a new deli counter, fresh fruit and vegetables, an area for people to drink coffee, freshly-made sandwiches and improved delivery services for food and newspapers. With strong support from the local community and the Parish Council, a successful application was made for grant aid support.

And in July, East Hampshire District Council and Hampshire County Council came together to save the treasured village store. The owners of the Village store, through the Village Community Grant Scheme were awarded a grant of £22,000 to take their plans forward. The grant funding consisted of £10,000 from East Hampshire District Council, and a further £12,000 from Hampshire County Council and SEEDA, the
regional development agency.

Councillor Jonathan Glen, Hampshire County Council Executive Member for Skills,
Economic Development and Human Resources said:

“Village shops are an essential part of rural life and I’m pleased that we can help John and Susan to revitalise their business and ensure that this vital service for local people is retained. The Village Community Grant Scheme exists to provide funding for projects just like the improvements planned for Passfield Village Store. It was created to help increase the use of village shops and/or to create new community-led village stores, particularly in communities that are losing their post offices.”

Two months on, Passfield’s Treasured village store looks even better

John and Susan Wood have transformed the village shop. The new-look store has a new deli-counter, fresh fruit and vegetables, freshly-made sandwiches and improved delivery services for food and news papers. The couple are also selling flowers and trying to support local produce. The floor space has been increased because the store is very busy.

Mr Wood said:

“ Without the grant we would have had to close the shop. Now we’ve got a shop that’s better than ever before. Closing the shop would have been like ripping the heart out of the community and now we are very much the hub of village life. This grant has saved the life of the village.”

District Councillor Millard, Porfolio Holder for Business Development said:
“It’s fantastic to see a success story in such difficult economic times. And it’s really wonderful to see the community and the council working together like this.”