Spark Community Space has officially opened its doors to the public

Founder Becki Simmons has been working on the big day for months after securing the site at the former Pompey Store in Fratton.

Up until now, she has been running the charity from Sherlock’s Bar in Southsea, where she ran coffee mornings, as well as within the Central Library in Portsmouth.

She has built up a dedicated team of volunteers who help run the charity and have been working hard getting the new space ready for the opening.

Many local businesses have also done their part to enable Spark to open, with several firms donating their time, skills, labour and materials for free.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony marked the opening of the space, with members of the community all invited to celebrate over hot drinks and cake thereafter.

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Becki said: ‘I’m so excited to be opening after what has been months of hard work from myself and all of the amazing volunteers, without whom this would not be possible. I’ve been absolutely blown away by the support from the community – people donating their time to paint walls, businesses offering us their services absolutely free and, of course, the people who help to run Spark day in, day out.’

She founded the charity in October 2020 after having emergency brain surgery which turned her life upside down, and has built it up to what it is today.