Charity is '˜in love' with its new centre

Harbour Cancer Support, in Gosport, needed to move out of its current home at Gosport bus station after the area was earmarked for development by Gosport Borough Council.

The charity, which offers practical and emotional support to people in the area affected by cancer, will now be moving into Stoke Road in January.

Melanie Whitfield-Tinkler, said she knew the building was right for them from the moment she walked in.

She said: ‘I think the big thing that sold it for me was how much more accessible this new site is.

‘Currently we are based on the first floor, which is awkward both for disabled people and for those going through chemotherapy – it 
is a lot of steps to climb 
when you’re busy battling cancer.

‘The new building is also a bit bigger, which means we can have an additional consultation room.

‘In short we can open our doors to a lot more people, which is just fantastic – we love it.’

The move is coming after the charity launched a campaign to raise £50,000 ahead of the proposed move to another location.

Currently, its site at the bus station is rent-free – but they will soon have to pay rent, adding to their bills.

Speaking about the changes Melanie added: ‘Some of this money will be going into the bank so that we can pay rent.

‘We will also be able to pay for some refurbishments as well.

‘The support from people in the town has genuinely been phenomenal and we cannot thank residents enough for their support.

‘We have been at the bus station for 16 and a half years, so we are sad to be leaving, but at the same time we’re hugely excited about the move.

‘Now we just need to start packing our bags.’

The date for the move of the service has yet to be announced.