A vision of what is possible where buildings such as the Horsham Town Hall is concerned is set out in this extract from Francis Maude's weekly Francis' Footnote in an edition of the West Sussex County Times in 2006;

 

‘St Mary's in Springbourne is a deconsecrated church right in the heart of Bournemouth's most deprived area. It is a major community centre serving thousands of families that currently lacks basic facilities. And this is a community that needs facilities more than most. So over this week we've been working with the community to transform it into a self-sustaining centre; with space for local charities, an arts studio, a neighbourhood kitchen and a venue for conferences, exhibitions and drama productions.    It's a project inspired by local people, volunteer-run and entrepreneurial. It’s taken a lot of work-painting, cleaning, and building. Even from me! On Tuesday I spent the whole morning painting and cleaning. I got so caught up in the job that I had to speak on the conference platform in painting clothes. There were loads of people helping-David Cameron and other Shadow Cabinet members, volunteers and even a journalist or two! Local MP, Tobias Elwood, organised the whole deal, and now his local community will be reaping rewards for years to come.’

The name of the centre is the Bourne Spring Centre.
The church of St Mary’s was built between 1926-34.

March 2010

Francis Maude MP was interviewed for Sussex Life and when asked about the Town Hall he said;

“It needs to be for community use. Horsham is not short of restaurants.
I would be very content with community use. It is a lovely building.”