Keeping Caversham and Emmer Green great places to live
NICK HASKINS succeeded Helen Lambert as Chair of the Caversham and District Residents’ Association (CADRA) in May 2025. He is no stranger to many local residents through his involvement in local sporting events, such as Reading Amateur Regatta and helping out at cycling and canoeing events. He really likes sport, and thinks it is great for the community, health and mental wellbeing. He is also Chair of the North Reading Safer Neighbourhood Forum, working with a variety of organisations to make the area a safer place to live.
The Haskins family made the move from Twickenham to Caversham in 2014. Nick had been involved in a serious accident the previous year and for family reasons they needed a change. They wanted to live somewhere between London and Oxford, to stay close to the river and have access to good cycling routes – and found a home here in Caversham. He continued working in finance in London for some time but, more recently, has been working as a consultant with start-ups, creating employment opportunities.
Nick’s wife Ania is also well known locally through her association with the Friends of Caversham Court Gardens and other interests. They have two adult children, a son who has just graduated from Reading University, and a daughter who is a trauma physiotherapist in the NHS.
Nick is ambitious for CADRA and set out his vision for its future at the annual general meeting, with the aim of ‘Keeping Caversham and Emmer Green great places to live’, by backing events that positively promote our community, helping to ensure better outcomes for planning and licensing, and contributing to ending things like antisocial behaviour which are detrimental to our community.
Where are your favourite places to eat, drink and shop in our area?
We don’t tend to eat out much, but are regulars in the local independent coffee shops and bars.
How do you think we can be eco-friendlier here?
I would like people to think more about their everyday choices. Each one might not have a huge impact but, if everyone did something, the cumulative effect would be great. However, I’m against the idea of imposing decisions on others – everyone must do what is right for them.
How would you strengthen our sense of community?
Together with my previous response, I would ask everyone to understand other people’s points of view, with better communication leading to better decisions for the local community.
If you could bring anything here, such as an event, experience or a shop, what would it be?
I think what we actually need is a little more self-belief, because Reading has everything we need but we don’t necessarily realize it.
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