New lease of life for disused village site

After several years of organisation, Carsington and Hopton Parish Council unveiled the new village green area on a site in between the Miner’s Arms and St Margaret’s Church, in Carsington.

The project was made possible thanks to £50,000 of funding supported by the Exton Trust, Carsington Reservoir Fund, Derbyshire Dales District Council and the local group CARE.

Parish councillor Adam Summerhayes explained that a few years ago the Exton Trust, which is a private fund set up to help community projects in the area, acquired the patch of land in the centre of the village.

“They gave it to the council to develop as a village green,” he added.

The current parish council chairman Councillor Craig Southway, led a public consultation in the villages of Carsington and Hopton to see what local people wanted to do with the land.

Meanwhile, Councillor Summerhayes, who was then chairman, went about applying for enough funding to allow the project to go ahead.

“We got planning permission and we were supported financially by the Exton Trust to a considerable degree,” he said.

“We also has a substantial grant from the Carsington Water Reservoir Fund, we also got funding from the district council.”

Councillor Summerhayes said Longcliffe Quarry has also given it’s support to the project.

He explained that the money has been used to install bits of play equipment such as a slide, play tunnel and stepping stones.

Visitors to the site will also note the unusual seating, which are wooden badgers and mushrooms, carved by a craftsman in Yorkshire.

Councillor Summerhayes said: “I think it gives the children somewhere they can just meet and hang out.

“It’s a focal point for kids to play, it’s also a space that anybody can just wander down to and sit.

“It’s a site in the middle of the village and it gives us somewhere where we can put on small to medium sized village events.

“Plus it cleared up an area in the middle of the village that didn’t look attractive before.”

The ribbon for the new green was cut by the council on Saturday.

To comment on this story online, visit the Mercury website, www.matlockmercury.co.uk. Alternatively, visit the Matlock Mercury Facebook page, www.facebook.com/matlockmercury