man walking through a microbrewery with barrels

New micro brewery plans for Sandown get government cash boost

The Common Space in Sandown have been successful in winning nearly £100,000 from the Coastal Communities Fund for a Micro Brewery and Micro Museum in Sandown.

One of ten projects across the South East to be successful, £99,000 has been awarded towards the project to create a micro-brewery, micro museum, cafe, gallery and shops at 105 High Street, Sandown, Isle of Wight.

Boyd: Celebrating our local natural and cultural heritage
Ian Boyd from The Common Space told OnTheWight,

“This is such fantastic news and we’re really pleased that we can add another step to the revival of our wonderful town!

“We’re grateful to the Isle of Wight Council for supporting our bid and to all the individuals and organisations who are working so hard to make The Bay a place where great projects and successes are sure to keep on coming!

“The brewery and museum, and the super new high street venue they create, will celebrate our local natural and cultural heritage, from curious collections and beer botanicals to The Snark!”

What is The Common Space?
The Common Space works to revitalise everyday, lost or forgotten public land and buildings, putting them to use in the service of community wellbeing and social enterprise.

It’s a not-for-profit organisation that works by fundraising for projects, making partnerships with others and supporting local volunteers.

The grant
Ian explained that the bid money is matched against in-kind of about £30,000, to get the project built and up and running.

He said,

“The key thing is that we have the funds to build the venue and create the jobs, and it’s then up to the team to make it the public asset we all want it to be, alongside a self-sufficient enterprise!”

Brokenshire: Designed and developed by local people
Communities Secretary, Rt Hon James Brokenshire MP said:

“I am determined to support investment and development of our coastal communities across the South East and create an economy that works for everyone as we prepare for Brexit and beyond.

“All of the ambitious projects receiving funding today were designed and developed by local people who know what will make the biggest difference to their areas.

“The sheer range of ideas demonstrate the potential of our coastal communities and will all create good jobs, boost growth and improve people’s lives now and in the future.”

Image: elevate on unsplash under CC BY 2.0