The Friends Haven Community Network - Worthing & Brighton
Worthing, P6
**Your Local Friendship Community Network**
The **Friends Haven Community** was founded in 2022 as a friendship community network for adults of all ages. The main aim of the Community is to host face-to-face group events in a safe environment, to facilitate networking between new and old friends. We focus on meeting real people rather than anonymous online chat, and our Community values friendship, honesty, trust, diversity, mutual respect and support. In addition to some regular networking and support events, we encourage Members to get involved by hosting their own small group gatherings; Member hosted events are a great way to build friendships and share a wide range of hobbies, interests and knowledge.
For us it's not just about large group events (although these are fun). Our Members experience the usual range of challenges from not having car transport, varying work shifts and child care pressures, to health/disability related issues and limited budgets. Our Community therefore aims to be inclusive by facilitating a range of accessible Member hosted local hub meetups across the region and the growth of an active and supportive friendship community network.
From pre-planned outings to spur of the moment gatherings, our Members meet up in all sorts of places for a wide range of activities. These include cinema outings, countryside and beach walks, photography themed outings, day trips to historical locations, cycling, restaurant/cafe/pub based events, camping holidays, theatre visits, day trips to London to visit museums and galleries, gym sessions, night sky watching picnics, swimming, water sports, team games, matchmaking events, beach barbecues, visiting summer fairs, educational talks and demonstrations, social dancing and much more.
Regular events planned for this year include our International Food Trail across Brighton, Hove and Worthing; regular dog friendly walks across Sussex; cinema and theatre trips, and our Fitness Friends & Exercise Buddy networking scheme for anyone in the process of physical rehab, serious physical training for dance/sport or just wanting some company, motivation and moral support while keeping fit.
The **Friends Haven Community Network** incorporates the **Canine Conundrum UK** dog friendly network and the **Sand Dancers UK** community network for adults interested in dance and music. Many of our events may therefore be shared across the networks. Member events may also link up and be co-ordinated around other activity focused groups and services in the area, such as exercise classes. If you’re looking for friends to share your hobbies with or to try something new then you’re welcome to join us.
This is primarily a community network for adults, although supervised teenagers are welcome as guests at many events. Mixed family groups with young children will only be invited to special events suitable for their age range. If you have ideas for an event in your area then please contact us online, or even better at one of our face-to-face networking and planning socials.
**Volunteering**
The Friends Haven Community and its associated networks is a community group spread across a wide area. We are self-funded and are not a service provider; everything we do is currently driven and funded by our Members. As a Member there are lots of ways to get involved socially and as a volunteer within the Community. Please get in touch if you’d like to start a local meet-up hub in your area, initiate or host an event, volunteer at one of our summer fair networking booths; or support the Central Organising Committee as one of our professional advisers and trainers.
**If you'd like to meet us to find out more, please come along to one of our networking events or get in touch via the Meetup app.**
**Always Follow Local Bye-Laws and The Countryside Code**
When participating in our Community events, please be aware of the local government bye-laws and dog codes for the area visited. For information on the countryside code, please refer to https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-countryside-code/the-countryside-code-advice-for-countryside-visitors. The New Forest Code is available at https://www.newforestdog.org.uk/the-dog-walking-code.
**Safe Introductions at Dog Friendly Events**
Some events will be dog friendly and this will normally be posted on the event page. To ensure everyone's health and safety (including that of our furry friends), please be aware of good practice when bringing a dog into a group environment or an enclosed space. These situations can be stressful for dogs, their handlers and other people present. Unplanned interactions with other adults and children are likely to occur in public spaces, so please be prepared. Members should always aim to meet first in an open public space that is safe for an initial meet and greet between people and dogs. For more information on safe behaviour around dogs and how to meet and greet an unknown dog, please refer to the **Safe SPACE** and other guides on the Canine Conundrum UK meetup page.
**Personal Responsibilities**
The Friends Haven Community is a community network organised by volunteers. We are not a professional service provider and everything we do is currently arranged and funded by our Members. While Event Organisers and Hosts will take reasonable steps to ensure the safety of participants, everyone taking part in our Community events does so at their own risk.
At our dog friendly Community events, dog owners always remain responsible for their dogs and are expected to follow the local bye-laws and countryside codes. All dogs should wear a suitable collar with appropriate ID, be vaccinated and on regular flea treatment, and be covered by a minimum of third-party dog insurance. Dogs should remain on-lead where required for safety and local by-laws. In designated off-lead spaces, dogs should remain on-lead until agreed by the event participants (i.e., following the Safe SPACE guide above), or where a dog has poor recall and is causing a disturbance to others.
Members should ensure they wear appropriate clothing/shoes for the event and come equipped for the type of event. If a Member has health or disability issues, they should discuss these with the event organiser/host to ensure that they can be accommodated safely; special arrangements may be possible to ensure the event is accessible to all levels of fitness and ability (e.g., splitting a walking group into a longer rough path route and a shorter accessible route).
Our Community Organisers, Event Organisers, Event Hosts and other volunteers assume no responsibility for anyone attending one of our events. The Community Organisers, Event Organisers, Event Hosts and other volunteers will not be held responsible for any accident, injury or loss occurring as a result of any Community event or in connection with travel to and from an event. The Friends Haven Community accepts no responsibility for any harm, loss or damage caused by the actions of the general public, Community Members, their guests or their dogs.
When you join an event, you are confirming that you accept these conditions and that no legal liability is accepted by the Community’s organisers and other volunteers.
