Sea Scouts future secure through Anderson development

Having called the former Oare Gravel Works, their home for over 40 years, the 8th Faversham Sea Scout group has entered into a long-lease with Anderson which will secure them a brand-new headquarters as part of the wider development of this former gunpowder works.

In bringing forward the development on the site, which includes 330 homes, a country park and the refurbishment of on-site listed buildings, Anderson has also provided a temporary scout compound for use by the youth group while their permanent home is renovated.

Denis Batson, leader of the Sea Scouts, said, “It would’ve been so easy for Anderson to chuck us off and force us to find a new home elsewhere. Therefore we are so pleased that we’ve got a temporary and new HQ on the site we’ve called home for decades.

“I’ve been involved in the design of our new building and there’s an air of excitement around having the use of it in years to come. We have in this a great place to engage young people in scout-related activities and look forward to the future.”

Sean Emmett, Group Development Director at the Anderson Group, said, “As soon as we took ownership of the site in January 2018 we knew just how important the Scout group is to young people and families in Faversham.

“Therefore we worked extremely hard to make sure their tenancy was secured in both the short and long term. By providing them with a 99-year lease we’ve opened up a world of funding and activity opportunities from which we hope they’ll benefit.”

Pictured is Denis Batson, leader of the 8th Faversham Sea Scouts and Christian Criscione, Anderson’s Communications Officer.