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Below is a copy of the press release published in the Beccles And Bungay Journal on the 30th July 2021.

The Waveney and Yare Housing Association (WYHA) has created a Community Grant Fund of £10,000 specifically for local groups in the town, and it comes after the association gave a grant of £1,000 to the Beccles Citizen Advice Office last year.

A grants committee has now been established to administer the fund, consisting of four directors and led by town councillor and former mayor Graham Catchpole.

He said: "We are all long-standing residents of Beccles and know the town and its organisations very well, and we hope to help as many community groups as possible and will not be granting large amounts to any individual organisation."

Before becoming an independent housing association, the WYHA was part of the William Clowes and Sons business. To meet the printing company's rapid post-war expansion and increased staff demand, they began building houses around the town, starting with 36 homes in Merrylees. Forbes Drive followed, as well as Duke Street and Queen Elizabeth Drive, then Fairfax Court and Cromwell Avenue.

In 2001, Clowes Court bungalows were built offering smaller homes for retired residents. 

At its peak, the company employed 1,400 people at their town centre site, where the town's Tesco Superstore stands today. 

David Browne, chair of the association, said: "We thought it was a good time to put something back into the town, and continue, in a small way, the major contribution that the William Clowes Printing Company made to Beccles over many decades."

The Clowes family owned both the printing company and the housing association and established the latter in May 1961 as the Clowes Yare Housing Society, before changing their name in 1975.

Over time, applications for housing were accepted for local people without a connection to the printing company, with the final links to the business removed in 2016.

Applications for a share of the funding grant are restricted to Beccles-based groups only.

To apply, email cosec@wyha.co.uk, or write to WYHA, Goal Lane, Beccles, NR34 9SJ.

Last updated 20/08/2021

As part of its continuing commitment to Beccles the Board of the Waveney & Yare Housing Association has donated £1000 towards the running costs of the Beccles Citizens Advice office in 2021. The Board consider that the existence of the Citizens Advice in Beccles is a valuable resource for the residents of the town, in which the Housing Association owns 180 properties. 

A number of our tenants would have made use of the Citizens Advice services in difficult times over the years, and it is hoped that the donation will go a little way towards safeguarding the future of the CAB office in Beccles for all local residents.

Janet John (Chief Executive) of Citizens Advice North East Suffolk said " we are delighted to receive this donation towards our work in Beccles.  Since the start of the first lockdown in March we have continued to deliver all our services by phone, our website and e-mail  tel: 01502 518510, https://nesuffolkcab.org.uk/  or  bureau@nescab.cabnet.org.uk.  We are very much looking forward to re-opening our offices when the Covid restrictions are eased."

 Last updated 22/02/2021

The office is now back to normal opening hours and Jonathan or Clare will be available weekday mornings, and messages can be left on the office phone or you can call the mobile number in the event of an emergency.

Please note that the work email addresses are now:

Jonathan   cosec@wyha.co.uk 

Clare            admin@wyha.co.uk

 Last updated 04/12/2020