Thank you to the 15 Trust members who collected 20 bags of litter this morning, during our annual Spring litter pick in the village.
Archive for the ‘Volunteers’ Category
Litter picked
March 24, 2018Croci in bloom
March 21, 2018Last October volunteers from the Trust planted 5000 purple crocus bulbs on the verge opposite Rumi’s. They had been provided by Consett Rotary Club to raise awareness of its ‘Purple for Polio’ national campaign.
A couple of weeks ago just a handful of crocus were visible, but the warmer weather following the ‘Beast from the East’ has led to the start of blooming. A bit more sunshine over the next few days should ensure a wonderful Easter display, provided children and dogs don’t trample the flowers.
Clean sweep for ‘The Cut’
December 11, 2017Last Friday morning a group of 5 volunteers cleared overhanging branches, debris and mud from the well used tarmac path between Briary Gardens and Peile Park. It is also known as the ‘Chicken Run’, as there used to be a chicken coup in the field beside the path. The stream was also cleared of debris.
Purple4Polio
November 4, 2017The Trust has been given 5000 crocus bulbs by Consett Rotary Club, to plant in the village.
It was decided to plant them along the grass verge opposite Rumi’s, in front of the daffodil bulbs which the Trust planted a few years ago.
Over half were planted yesterday by seven volunteers from the Trust and another working party has been arranged for next Friday to finish the job.
The Rotary’s Purple4Polio initiative in 2016 was a huge success with nearly 7 million purple corms being planted across Great Britain and Ireland resulting in a carpet of purple in communities during spring 2017. This year, Rotary is aiming to go even further and plant 10 million purple crocus corms!
The purple crocus is a symbol of Rotary’s worldwide campaign to eradicate polio, with its colour representing the purple dye used to mark the finger of a child to indicate they have received their life saving oral polio vaccine.
More information can be found on the Rotary website.
Village centre tidy up
October 7, 2017Thank you to the 10 Trust members who helped remove litter, moss & weeds from the pavements and ‘triangle’ in the village centre yesterday morning. Everywhere looks much tidier now, after only a couple of hours work.
Working parties are being held on the first Friday morning of the month. Next month we are bulb planting, daffodils & croci along the main road.
History Walks
September 10, 2017Despite the weather, two dozen people enjoyed the HOD walks in Shotley Bridge this weekend.
Thank you to the members of the Village Trust Heritage Group who led the guided walks.
Copies of the Trust’s History booklet can be purchased from Harrington Brown Estate Agents, in Shotley Bridge, or on-line from eBay.
HOD History Walks
August 26, 2017
For the third year the Trust is giving guided walks during the “Heritage Open Days” festival, on 9th & 10th September.
The walks are based on the Trust’s Shotley Bridge History booklet that was published last year.
There will be a choice of 4 walks, guided by the Trust members who researched and wrote the publication.
The 32 page booklet will be on sale for £3 at the end of each tour. Shotley Bridge pin badges will also be available for £2.
Self guided walks will also be available, based on the Trust’s publication ‘Shotley Bridge Heritage Trail’.
Have a look at the other places to visit during the 4 day Heritage Open Days festival
Litter pick success
April 9, 2017On Saturday morning 15 members of the Trust, together with our local county councillors, picked up litter from the village centre and along the main roads radiating outwards. Thank you to all those who volunteered. The village looks a lot tidier now.
Land of Oak & Iron
March 7, 2017The next meeting of the Shotley Bridge Village Trust is on 21st March. Please invite your relatives, friends & neighbours to come along.
Kath Marshall-Ivens, Community Engagement Officer, from Groundwork will be giving a presentation about the ‘Land of Oak & Iron’ Landscape Partnership. This 4 year project, hosted by Groundwork NE & Cumbria, is supported by a £2.2 grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund.
Working with local communities and partners it aims to conserve, enhance and celebrate the natural, industrial and cultural heritage of the Derwent Valley. There are now 14 projects being delivered until 2020, with many opportunities for local people, groups and organisations to get involved through a range of different activities.
For more information about the Partnership and opportunities to get involved go to their website.
‘Land of Oak & Iron’ Project
January 6, 2017Groundwork are looking to recruit volunteers to help record memories of Shotley Bridge’s cultural, social and natural heritage. Volunteers will be offered training on how to prepare for an interview and use recording equipment, before going into schools and youth settings, to record the memories of parents and grandparents. Other community groups will also be invited to take part.
The recordings will be used for interpretation material and will be stored in a digital archive.
If anyone is interested in volunteering, they should contact Joanne directly and she will send them an application pack.
As well as helping with recording memories Groundwork are also keen to recruit individuals who can help link them up with existing groups or people known locally who could be interviewed.
Christmas Tree
November 13, 2016This year the village Christmas tree will be lit up on Saturday 3rd December. Thanks to our local councillors for providing funding again.
Shotley Bridge Primary School choir will be there to sing carols after the lighting of the tree at 4.30pm.
Everyone is welcome to watch or sing along.
We will also be collecting donations for ‘Blooming’ Shotley Bridge at the event.
Pansies and litter
October 19, 2016Last Saturday our volunteers planted the winter bedding in the Trust’s tubs and planters.
This year we have planted multi coloured pansies instead of violas, which were not as successful as in previous years. Tete a Tete daffodils, iris and tulip bulbs have been planted too. The County Council will be planting up the barrier baskets to match.
If you would like to help tidy up the village, there is to be a litter pick and sweep up on the morning of Saturday 29th October. We are meeting in the car park next to the Golden Flower at 9.30am. Litter pickers, bags and hi-viz vests will be provided. Bring your own gloves and tools to cut down weeds and sweep paths.
Shotley Bridge History Walks
September 5, 2016For the second year the Trust is giving guided walks during the “Heritage Open Days” festival, in September.
This time the walks are based on the Trust’s Shotley Bridge History booklet that was published in June.
There will be a choice of 4 walks, guided by the Trust members who researched and wrote the publication.
The 32 page booklet will be on sale for £3 at the end of each tour. Shotley Bridge pin badges will also be available for £2.
Let’s hope the weather conditions are more favourable than last year!
Follow this link for information about other places to visit during the Heritage Open Days festival
Red white & blue
July 20, 2016Despite not entering Northumbria in Bloom this year, the Trust’s tubs, barrier baskets and sustainable beds are looking colourful.
Thank you to all the volunteers who planted and maintain them. Thanks also to Durham County Council for planting the barrier baskets to match our colour scheme this year.
Agenda for SBVT Meeting
June 7, 2016The next meeting of the Shotley Bridge Village Trust is on 21 June. All welcome.
Spring Bedding in Bloom
April 15, 2016Daffodils and tulips planted by the Trust were in full bloom this week in the conservation area, giving a colourful display. The violas are flowering too, which will hopefully give colour until the Trust’s volunteers plant up the tubs with summer bedding at the end of May.
Clean cut
April 5, 2016This morning, eight volunteers of the Village Trust spent a couple of hours cutting back vegetation, clearing the stream and removing debris from the path.
Thanks to Carol, Jeff, Keith, John S, John W, Margaret, Richard & Sue for all their hard work. The Cut looks lovely & clean and the new bulbs and plants have made a big improvement.
25 Bags of Litter
March 19, 2016This morning 17 volunteers collected 25 bags of litter in & around Shotley Bridge.
Thank you to all those who helped to make the village cleaner.
Big Spring Clean tomorrow
March 18, 2016This year the Shotley Bridge annual spring litter pick, organised by the Trust, is being held on Saturday 19 March …
Volunteers to meet at the Golden Flower car park in the village centre at 9.30am.
Gloves, bags, pickers and hi-viz vests will be provided, if you don’t have them.
Blooming report
October 25, 2015Over thirty members of the Trust attended the recent Open Meeting, at which a report was given about the Trust’s entry in Northumbria in Bloom this year.
Unfortunately, we were unsuccessful in our bid for ‘Gold’, being just 4 marks [out of 200] short of attaining the top award in the competition, but we managed to achieve our highest score ever and another ‘Silver Gilt’, for the third consecutive year.
Disappointed that the extra improvements and volunteer effort this year had only resulted in achieving another ‘Silver Gilt’, it was announced that the ‘Blooming’ committee had decided not to enter the competition in 2016. It was emphasised, though, that the high standard of planting in the tubs, baskets, troughs and sustainable beds throughout the conservation area would be continued by volunteers next year, but without the extra work behind the scenes needed to impress judges. Hopefully the local businesses will continue with their own floral displays too, to keep Sholey Bridge ‘Blooming’.
The slideshow presentation given at the meeting was taken from the photographs in the Portfolio, which had been presented to the judges when they visited in July …
Shotley Bridge Village Trust 