Get involved and help our town thrive

That is the message from the Hebden Bridge Partnership, the umbrella organisation which brings together community groups in the town.

Its aim is to ensure community life and the local economy go from strength to strength.

Now the partnership is urging people to a play a part in realising its plans for the future.

Bob Deacon, chair of the Hebden Bridge Partnership, said: “So much goes on in Hebden Bridge you might sometimes wonder how it is done. A large amount of volunteer time by a large number of people who love the town is the answer.

“The town council sorts out allotments, runs the cinema, donates monies to a lot of community groups and painstakingly sifts through planning applications.

“The Hebden Bridge Community Association runs the Town hall and has initiated the Staying Well project this year and housed the collection point for refugee aid.

“The Hebden Bridge Partnership has worked this year to make the town more accessible, set up the new Calder Valley Community Land Trust to build affordable housing, produced again the Welcome to Hebden Bridge visitor brochure used by the Tourist Information Centre and is working on ideas for the use of the old Fire Station site if the attempt to build a Sainsbury store there is finally disallowed.”

To find out more and to join in to make their work even more effective, residents are urged to go along to the Hebden Bridge Partnership AGM on October 12 at 7pm.

It is the annual event where voluntary groups have three minutes each to share with everone what they have been doing and their plans for the year ahead.

Visitors can hear from the Hebden Bridge Community Association, the Friends of the Picture House, Hebden Bridge Local History Society, Upper Calder Valley Renaissance, Calder and Colne Rivers Trust, Handmade Parade,

the Flood Action group, Hebden Bridge Woodcraft Folk, Fox and Goose cooperative, Mill Pond group, Hope Baptist church, HB Walkers Action, Pennine Heritage, The Egg Factory collective, Hebden Bridge Junior Band, Calder Valley Community Land Trust, Wainsgate Chapel Arts, Hebden Bridge Piano Festival, Friends of Hebden Bridge Station, Hebden Bridge Arts Festival, Town Twinning Society, Hepton Singers, Trades Club, Thefactoryline, Folk Roots Festival, Northlight

studios, the swimming pool trust, Calder Civic Trust, Calder Valley Voices and many more.

There are also vacancies on the partnership’s management board and on some of their task groups progressing particular aspects of the group’s action plan.

These groups include the disability access group and the visitor economy strategy group.

If you are interested, but can’t attend the meeting let Andrew Bibby, the secretary know via [email protected]