A true community hub has turned one, celebrating a year of inclusion, events and success.

Pavilion in the Park (PiPs) on Poundbury's Great Field was opened by the Alcohol Education Trust in 2021 to provide a community space and office.

Helena Conibear, CEO of the Alcohol Education Trust, said: "We opened in the heart of lockdown on April 16 last year on a takeaway basis only, thinking we would have. A soft opening - but it was just extraordinary.

"We just can't quite believe we've come round to our first birthday.

The team marked the anniversary with a free Easter egg hunt, in which 207 families took part, a senior social coffee morning, as well as birthday festivities.

Helena added: "Saturday was our actual birthday and parkrun sand happy birthday to us, which was really sweet. It's also our manager Adelle Bailey's birthday on the same day, so we had a cake made - it was really lovely and some of our regulars came in and had a piece of cake. It was a really special week."

PiPs has become a big part of the community already - hosting a range of free events, supper clubs, and being a space for groups to meet.

"As a charity, what we know improves community cohesion and reduces anti-social behaviour is providing a sense of belonging," said Helena, "so an important part of our mission, what we want to do is create somewhere people feel very comfortable and open to everybody with no price barrier, so that's what we've done, from music in the park in the summer on Friday lunchtimes in the summer to our easter egg hunt, Halloween and we've got lovely jubilee celebrations on Sunday, June 5 with live music and a cake. Very quickly it's become a true community hub, which is really lovely."

A particular highlight from the past year for Helena is not an event, but what the café has become and created.

She added: "it's the whole atmosphere of the café and the way it's so welcoming and inclusive of everybody, including having really lovely local staff. That is the highlight that we've managed to keep our principle of what we wanted to be as somewhere that's welcoming and relaxed that's dog and family friendly.

"Also, that our regulars continue to support us through the winter, we've obviously been worried we would have amazing summers and then be really quiet in the winter, but what's been lovely is people do come back again and again.

"The biggest surprise was our Christmas carols, because we did it last minute. The Christmas lockdown was quite late and we had all had so many things cancelled for ourselves, with family or things we were doing, so we thought, why don't we do carols outside - we did it very last minute and we have no idea how many people turned up but it was hundreds and it was really lovely. Everybody brought lights. It was so spontaneous and we could never have imagined it would have been such a success.

"Going forward I think the most exciting thing is the jubilee because we want that to be something people always remember. I remember the Silver Jubilee when the queen came to my school and I remember it as clear as anything and I really want people to remember the jubilee."

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