St. Faith’s election hustings – Saturday 27 April at 7:30pm

The finest and oldest town centre venue with the perfect host. (There's really nothing for us to add to this!) Many thanks to Canon Tom, once again, for working so hard for Havant's St. Faith's community.

HCS Public Forum – 25 March 2024

On Monday evening, 25 March, HCS held a 'Public Forum' in St Faith's church with two invited members of Havant Borough Council's new executive management team, Alex Robinson, Director of Place, and Wayne Layton, Exec Head of Finance and Regeneration. We were all given a warm welcome by the Rector, Tom Kennar to whom Havant … Continue reading HCS Public Forum – 25 March 2024

Great British Railway Journeys visits Havant

In the current series of Great British Railway Journeys, Michael Portillo visits Havant, for a program which preserves for posterity the sight of Havant Station's soon-to-be-replaced footbridge. HCS were delighted to see that the presenter and his team spent much of their time in Havant at The Spring Arts and Heritage Centre in East Street. … Continue reading Great British Railway Journeys visits Havant

HS2 is now on schedule to arrive at Havant Station in 2025

In a welcome change of direction for the regeneration of the town centre, it seems that the ghost of HS2 may be appearing at Havant Station sometime in 2025. The government's 'Local Transport Fund', generated from the recent HS2 project cancellation savings, is not just being redistributed across the North of England and the Midlands, … Continue reading HS2 is now on schedule to arrive at Havant Station in 2025

McCormack House – 56A East Street

We've seen a little chatter on social media about this newly published planning application, some of which is a little confused. So to try and make things a little clearer, here's a brief overview of the proposal.  McCormack House will be familiar to visitors to The Spring and users of the Billy Trail between Langstone and … Continue reading McCormack House – 56A East Street

In case you wondered…

What motivates me to write some of the longer posts for the HCS website, the question has already been asked and the answer is here: “It’s good stuff, but why are you writing it and who do you want to read it?”Those are the two questions that my ever-patient partner recently asked me after quietly … Continue reading In case you wondered…

How is Amazon getting away without paying business rates?

Update: 1 February, 2024 On 23 January 2024, after almost a year's delay, the Valuation Office Agency published a valuation for the DPO1 site, backdated to 1 April 2023 with no interest payable. The reason for the delay is not available. Perhaps rather more to the point, what is Havant Borough Council doing about it? While we're … Continue reading How is Amazon getting away without paying business rates?

Langstone Millpond – Public Meeting 28 September

St Faith's church was packed on Thursday evening for a public meeting called by the Langstone Village Association (LVA) to raise the profile of the issue of the millpond and footpath between Langstone Mill and Wade Lane. The capacity audience was welcomed by Canon Tom Kennar, passionate as always that this wonderful space in the … Continue reading Langstone Millpond – Public Meeting 28 September

More roadworks upheaval coming, though not actually where it’s most needed

Park Road South Elmleigh Road updateEarlier works north of the stationThe Southleigh link road Park Road South Just when we're starting to see the end of the disruption at Elmleigh Road, Petersfield Road and the Park Road North 'Civic Plaza/HSDC' roundabout, Hampshire County Council are about to start digging up the southbound approach to Langstone … Continue reading More roadworks upheaval coming, though not actually where it’s most needed

Campdown confusion. Competition between developers reinforces risks to Havant borough’s health and heritage

As we reported last year, Dandara have now taken over the reigns from Persimmon Homes as the latest housing developer to submit a planning application for the Campdown site at Crookhorn, between South Downs College and Portsmouth Golf Course. The new application is simply a variation on the same theme, just two different sets of … Continue reading Campdown confusion. Competition between developers reinforces risks to Havant borough’s health and heritage