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LETTER: It’s festival time!
Manasamitra will be performing at Batley Festival.
The first Batley Festival takes place in the town centre on Saturday, with lots of fun activities for people of all ages.
I hope the Batley and district community will support the event and that the town will be packed with people for the day.
Don’t forget the Variety Show in the evening where local people will be providing fun and vibrant entertainment.
The Festival is an excellent example of partnership between the community and Kirklees council.
Local volunteers were invited by councillors to organise the event with financial backing and practical help from the council.
In the end it has been a small group of volunteers working with council officers.
Please come along and afterwards let us know how you think it went because this is the first of several annual events.
Another example of the co-operation between local people, in this case including members of the retail sector, and Kirklees officers (Towns’ Centre Management) is the annual Christmas Lights Switch-on event – this year it is on Thursday November 29.
In sharp contrast is the demise of Friends of Wilton Park. This group of local volunteers came together several years ago and establishing a safe and attractive environment for local people was their motivation. We saw the renovation of the Butterfly House, at the top of the park, which attracted many visitors throughout the year but it was difficult to maintain with only a few volunteers and, when it came to relying on help from the council, none was forthcoming.
The Friends have also been responsible for new duck houses on the island in co-operation with local scout groups and the renovation of the water feature, still to be finished.
As someone just on the fringes of the group, it saddens me to see the group fold after doing so much good. And it is a pity that, even in these times of financial restraint, the council could not step up to the mark and help to continue the good work.
There are many volunteers in the local community who give up valuable time to improve the life and facilities afforded to schools, churches, charities, sports clubs, residents’ associations, community groups, local music and drama clubs etc. Working in partnership with the council is the way forward to ensure that the community will thrive and keep the facilities which give that special but important “extra” to our lives.
Please come along on Saturday to join in and see this in action.
RICHARD MARTIN
Bradford Road
BATLEY
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Weather for Batley
Saturday 25 May 2013
Today
Sunny
Temperature: 6 C to 16 C
Wind Speed: 9 mph
Wind direction: North
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 7 C to 18 C
Wind Speed: 13 mph
Wind direction: West
