Spondon's Village Rejuvenation Team (VRT) have been working hard for a while now to keep our village centre vibrant, accessible and an attract place where people want to visit, meet and shop.
Here, VRT member Mark Davis explains more about the team, their aims and the work done so far - and why it's important that more people get involved.
"By now, you've probably seen or heard of the Village Rejuvenation Team, and you're probably wondering what it is, what's it for and what has it done?
Well, it's a mix of the Spondon Traders, the Village Improvement Committee, the Neighbourhood Board, local Councillors and anyone else that cares passionately about the village centre.
What the VRT cares about is the future of the village centre, community life and enjoyment. Without great, vibrant shops, the village dies. Without places to meet and chat, the village suffers. Without easy parking and easy public transport, the village is strangled.
So what have we done about it? The most obvious is Spondon Day, yes, the VRT organised that. The chance for Spondon businesses to show what they've got, and show that whatever you want, they've got it, and with a smile. You've always known that Spondon shops are good, and now they have shown that Spondon means Service with a Smile.
One of the other projects that you will probably noticed is the changes in the Village Hall car park. This is a VRT scheme, to increase the number of parking spaces, and to improve the parking for disability availability. We have worked very closely with council officers and organisations involved with the Village Hall, and have come up with a great scheme that should be finished soon. Keep watching for further updates soon.
And whilst we are talking about the Village Hall site, you've probably heard gossip about the grassed area at the back of the hall, which has been called the Village Green but that name has been argued with, could and should be a great place to meet and chat.
At the moment it is not that inspiring, but we're planning some great changes. A new path, better seating, some imaginative planting, that sort of thing. We also would like to get some extra seating beside the old Derbyshire building, and some changes have already started, We need your ideas to make this happen, and you can contact us by adding comments to the bottom of this article or via the STA Facebook page. We need your suggestions and ideas.
We know better access is needed into the top of the car park, buggies and chairs are always at risk, particularly if drivers are distracted. As a second phase we are looking at extra pathways off the road, linking in to the new area on the Village Green.
I hope that gives an idea of what we're doing. There will be a lot more information in a special presentation at the Spondon Neighbourhood Forum meeting at Edmund Hall on the 15th October. If you read this before then, come along. If you read this after the 15th, you can contact us as above."
Mark Davis, Spondon Village Rejuvenation Team,
