Chance for Broseley and Barrow residents to improve area

How to access funding through the Broseley and Barrow Opportunity Fund will be just one item on the agenda when the next meeting of the Action: Broseley and Barrow local committee is held on Tuesday 1 April. The meeting will be held at Willey & District Village Hall starting at 7.00pm and all local residents in the area are invited to attend.

The meeting will give people in the Broseley and Barrow area another chance to meet with local councillors, get involved in decisions affecting their community and help decide how the committee spends its budget.

At the last meeting held on 15 January, the committee agreed to provide £3,000 towards the provision of multi-use community facilities at the Birchmeadow Centre and Victoria Hall, Broseley. It also agreed to give £500 to Broseley Churches Together to develop a volunteering programme which will help older people and residents with disabilities to keep their gardens tidy.

The provision of transport for pupils attending William Brookes School in Much Wenlock was also discussed, along with Shropshire County Council’s budget proposals.

Jean Jones, Shropshire County Councillor for Broseley, said: “Action: Broseley and Barrow is giving local people a real chance to say how they think services and facilities in the area could be improved. The meetings held so far have offered some valuable suggestions about how and where the committee should spend its budget.

“This is a time of great change for local democracy in Shropshire, and we are really keen for people to come along to the meetings and share their concerns and ideas with us.

“We especially hope that people involved in projects that aim to improve life for those living in Broseley and Barrow come along next time to find out more about accessing funding through the Broseley and Barrow Opportunity Fund.”

The Action: Broseley and Barrow meetings have a committee of county, district, town and parish councillors drawn from the area, and a small budget which the committee allocates in response to issues raised by members of the public.

Action: Broseley and Barrow is one of five local committee pilots that have been meeting in Shropshire for the past year.

The Shropshire Council Implementation Executive recently agreed that, following the success of the pilots, each should continue for at least another twelve months, and that six further local committees should also be set up.

17 March 2008