Portsmouth councillor to abseil down Spinnaker Tower to raise money for Hilsea projects

Councillor Emily Strudwick of the Portsmouth Independent Party has asked residents to donate to her GoFundMe page for her 100m abseil, scheduled for July 28.

If the fundraiser hits the £2,000 target, a whole range of community initiatives will be funded for up to a year.

Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, Cllr Strudwick said: “We want to do as many activities as possible, to get the youth involved, to get the elderly involved – that’s where the focus is now.

“A lot of [elderly people] are lonely so it’s about giving them a space where they can go for tea or coffee or if they have any problems to discuss, it’s a more relaxed environment.

“Everyone wants more to do but especially Hilsea residents – many of them go over to Buckland or Baffins just to be part of the community because they’ve got the spaces.

“You’ll notice that when these community spaces are being used, anti-social behaviour is down. Now that the sun is out people will be out for longer so it’s crucial finding things for people to do.”

Despite her fear of heights, the Hilsea councillor is determined to take on the challenge to inspire more donations. “Sometimes you have to scare yourself to get more people to donate,” she said.

For every £1 raised, she will donate another £25p of her own money, if the target is hit it would fund:

• A year’s worth of free coffee mornings for residents
• A year’s worth of out-of-school activities for local children
• A year’s worth of community outreach programmes for mental health support, debt advice, stop smoking support etc.
• A year’s worth of monthly activities for adults including arts/crafts/leisure or community clubs.
• Four community cinema events free for families.

Residents can view and donate to the GoFundMe page by visiting: https://www.gofundme.com/f/community-projects-in-hilsea-for-residents