Current Projects
Low Carbon (electric vehicles) Project
Through the actions of the Agenda 21 group (and John Speed in particular), on 7th & 8th November Terry Osborne brought his Smarter Choices Roadshow to Kingsbridge, at which he demonstrated a range of electric bikes and scooters. Smarter Choices is a not for profit advisory company which is supporting the development of electric vehicles, and so pleased was Terry at the response of the Kingsbridge community that he applied to the Low Carbon Challenge Fund on our behalf for funding for electric vehicles and their charging points for the town.
The application was made, but was unsuccessful in gaining funding. However, Terry was so keen to include Kingsbridge in these developments (and members of the community were so keen on the possibilities for the town) that he has applied to Plymouth University for our inclusion in a smaller scale pilot. We await their feedback.
Proposals put to Council on Combe Royal Country Park and Nature Reserve
While the future of Kingsbridge beauty spot Combe Royal remains uncertain thanks to Devon County Council's plan to sell the estate, there is good news in that the Action Group has managed to meet with the Council's leader (John Hart) and its Chief Executive (Phil Norrey) and present its proposals for the site.
The Council had turned down a proposal made by the Friends of Combe Royal project team and subsequently by the local Agenda 21 group to turn the site into a park and nature reserve. This led to a public meeting being held, and the formation of the 'Action Group to keep Combe Royal for Kingsbridge'. The group collected 600 letters of support from individuals, as well as expressions of support from a range of local groups - in total representing over 2000 residents.
These were presented to John Hart and Phil Norrey by Bob Willars and Rosemary Speed.
Background:
Situated on the outskirts of town, the county council-owned property stands in 10 acres of grounds with a horticultural history spanning nearly two centuries. The house itself was privately owned from its construction in the early 1800s until 1989, when it was taken over by Devon County Council’s Social Services. Although DCC used the property for offices, the locally run Meadow Project were responsible for maintaining the grounds. It is now feared that the community will lose out without the educational purposes of the land, as well as the support for disadvantaged people made available through the Meadow Project.
The site was put on the market as part of DCC’s drive to ‘reduce unnecessary and costly offices’. The Meadow Project, who run various activities for members of the public from the grounds, were told they would have to vacate the premises by Spring 2010, while allotment holders were given notice to remove themselves immediately.
Following DCC’s announcement to sell up, the Friends of Combe Royal group sprang into action, with a proposal made by Dr Wendy Rees and her group for the use of the grounds as a park and nature reserve. This was rejected by the County Council on the grounds that they did not want the ongoing maintenance responsibility, and that the proposal may damage the site’s marketability.
The team then appealed to the Kingsbridge & District Agenda 21 group, who in turn appealed directly to DCC leader John Hart. However, their proposal was once more rejected by the County Council, with Cllr Hart describing the site as ‘surplus to the authority’s requirements.’ He added: ‘The proceeds from this sale will enable investment in the delivery of the authority’s priorities for the communities of Devon including a number of projects to address climate change.’
Bob Willars, the chairman of Agenda 21, who promote local sustainability, said: ‘The reply we received completely ignored our appeal for the community to be given an option to purchase the land.
Agenda 21 along with the Friends group feel that Combe Royal is a huge asset to the community - a potentially important natural amenity for the residents of the area. With the support of Kingsbridge Town Council we appealed to the Corporate Asset Group, who are in charge of distributing the County Council’s assets, but received a further dismissive response.
There had previously been a proposal to link the site with the town via a footpath, which would mean that school children among others would be able to access the grounds without having to use the main road. But with the County Council’s plans for the sale of the site set to take off in the new year, it is uncertain what will become of the area.
See the local press for developments.
Facilities for Young People (Youth Vision Project)
The Agenda 21 Group have identified meeting the needs of young people as a key sustainability issue for Kingsbridge and the surrounding area, particularly since statistics show that the South Hams has less than half the national average percentage of under 25 year olds in its population mix.
The area's ability to enthuse its young people about the South Hams, its local facilities and opportunities, we believe is crucial to the future sustainability of towns like Kingsbridge. If we want them to be thriving community centres, not holiday home ghettos, then they need to retain their young people and encourage them back after their further education.
We have researched the views and needs of young people in the area, and the facilities available for their leisure time, and have produced a report entitled 'Youth Vision'. Please contact us for a copy. Also, we would encourage you to get involved in taking the project further - just contact us for details.
A working group has been formed to take one of the findings through into action - its first meeting was on 25th June at Quay House. This was that young people would like some form of meeting place in Kingsbridge to spend time with friends. The group are keen to involve the town's youth in deciding exactly what this would look like, and plan to set up focus groups and an even more extensive survey of young people's views before putting forward the group's ideas for development.
The working group now incorporates a group of young people, and has recently met to take a tour round a number of locations in town which might provide the environment that youngsters need in which to 'chill out' with their friends. It is currently proposed that the old Baptist Church building in Phoenix Place will be trialled for a period of 2-3 months after Easter.
If you are interested in taking part in this project, please contact Bob Willars via the contact page on this website, or by calling 01548 857603.
Pictorial Meadows Project - latest update
DISCOVERY THROUGH THE CREATION OF “PICTORIAL MEADOWS”
A PROJECT FOR PRIMARY SCHOOLS IN THE SOUTH DEVON COASTAL AREA
NEWSLETTER Number 2 – February 2010
One month to go until sow time!
We now have the initial group of primary schools who are taking part in the first year of this exciting project: Kingsbridge, Kingswear and Stokenham.
As a reminder, funding is coming from the Plymouth & South West Co-operative Society’s Community Dividend Fund. The money will support the above schools during this season and then continue supporting them, with the addition of a further three schools, during 2011.
Each school gets £80 in its first year to spend on ‘set-up’ costs such as preparing the ground, purchasing gardening implements, producing information boards, etc. In addition, each school will be given four different seed mixes, each to cover 5 square metres. At Kingsbridge Community Primary School we’ve used our money to purchase wood, nails and soil to construct new raised beds near the school entrance. We’ve chosen a hexagon-shaped design with a central area where pupils will be able to sit, totally surrounded by flowers in the summer. The soil is now prepared, weed-free and ready for sowing next month. Please can you let us know how your plots are coming along; photos would be great!
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New flower meadow plots at Kingsbridge Community Primary School
The seed mixes have been chosen to provide a good range of colours from May through to November. This allows us a long period of time either side of summer holidays in which to incorporate the flowers in our studies:
We will aim to all sow the seeds towards the end of March, and then as the season unfolds each school can carry out similar activities (devised as we go along) such as:
Best practice for preparing the plots and sowing
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We have included some photos of the flowers which can be laminated and used for identification purposes. Also enclosed is a project idea about bees which we hope you’ll be able to do with the older children.
Further information about the seed mixes is at: http://www.pictorialmeadows.co.uk/
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Background:
Many children today, even in rural areas such as the South Hams, have lost their connection with the soil, and with the very ecosystems which support life on our planet. This was the view of a project group which has been established to seek in a small way to address this concern, and by doing so provide fun for children and involve them in the beauty of flowers.
The project involves working with a number of primary schools, involving children of all abilities and requiring them to work cooperatively together. The idea is that schools participating in the first year will become mentors to those starting in the second year. It is a true community project, as it is based upon parental participation, as well as teachers and
children.
Wendy Rees has been particularly instrumental in contacting Dr Nigel Dunnett of the Department of Landscape, University of Sheffield who has created various seed mixes to provide 'low input, diverse and colourful landscapes' - which he calls 'pictorial meadow seed mixes'. With the support of the Agenda 21 group, she has submitted a funding application to the Plymco Community Dividend Fund for seeds and equipment. The fund has been heavily oversubscribed, so the project team were fortunate to receive half of the resources applied for. The project will start with a smaller number of schools as a result, but through the mentoring process others will be able to join in.
For any further information, or to express an interest in the project, please contact Dr Wendy Rees (Project Manager) at w.rees245@btinternet.com
Kingsbridge in Bloom
Members of the Agenda 21 group were actively involved in preparing for Kingsbridge’s second entry into the SouthWest in Bloom competition – one of 18 regional and national competitions that make up Britain in Bloom – the biggest horticultural campaign in Europe. For the second time, Kingsbridge was awarded a Silver Gilt award in the main competition - well done to all involved!.
The broad aims of the competition are that participating communities will use the process ‘to improve and regenerate their local environments, through the imaginative planting of trees, shrubs, flowers and landscaping, conservation and recycling projects, and to sweep away the eyesores that blight our streets, such as litter, graffiti and vandalism’.
So, what’s this got to do with sustainability?
Well, alongside ‘horticultural excellence’ and ‘environmental friendliness’, two of the four core pillars of the award are ‘community involvement’ and ‘sustainability’. Kingsbridge recognises that an attractive town will boost tourism, and improve on everyone’s feeling of well-being. Without the right balance of tourism, Kingsbridge will not be viable in the long-term as a vibrant community centre and market town, and in that sense not sustainable. Also, without the involvement of members of the community there will not be the buy-in from residents and businesses to improve the town’s attractiveness that will ensure that efforts are maintained, and again sustainable.
If you would like to find out more, or to be involved – please contact the Kingsbridge in Bloom project manager Graham Price at grahampriceuk@aol.com.