Wansbeck
Posted on Fri 20 January 2012
Lesson learned in brief: projects that not in direct response to local people identifying the need may take a while for the community to take ownership of.
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The lesson learnt relates to the decision making process by the Wansbeck Fair Share local panel to award grants to Groundwork North East to redevelop Paddock Wood. This is a green space in the Fair Share area that was a Millennium Green but has had little community involvement and participation in its maintenance since. The panel commissioned Groundwork to write a scoping exercise into the development of Paddock Wood, including the installation of a wheeled sports area.
Groundwork involved local young people in the design of a wheeled sports area and other groups such as uniformed groups in the design of a natural play area, landscaping to make the area more accessible and less water-logged, and in the planting of bulbs. Groundwork, with Wansbeck CVS, is in the process of setting up 'Friends of Paddock Wood', which will be a sub-committee of North Seaton Community Association and eventually led by local volunteers. This side of the project is progressing quite slowly as the locals involved are reluctant to take on too much responsibility i.e. an officer role in an independently constituted 'Friends of' group.
The CVS and Groundwork have come the conclusion that because this group is led by Groundwork, is already funded, and is not in direct response to local people identifying a need for the group, it will take a while for the community to take ownership of the group.
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