A community garden group in Caldmore can continue its work after Walsall Council agreed to extend it lease another 15 years.
Caldmore Community House in Carless Street, part of Caldmore Village Festival Limited, offers local residents the opportunity to work, learn and play together in the space.
Caldmore Community Garden was created in 2011 after a group of volunteers from Caldmore Village Festival Group approached whg (Walsall Housing Group) and Walsall Council with the idea of transforming a derelict piece of land in the middle of Caldmore into a space for all.
It obtained a lease in 2016 for the former school caretaker’s house and started refurbishment work on what is now known as Caldmore Community House.
Since then, it has hosted community meetings, workshops, classes, children’s activities and holiday play schemes and training sessions. Last year the garden, which was visited more than 25,000 times, was awarded a prestigious Green Flag community award and an RHS It’s Your Neighbourhood award.
Run by two full-time members of staff, three part time project delivery workers, plus more than 50 regular volunteers, it is open six days a week, thanks to funding from the National Lottery Community Fund (Reaching Communities), Tudor Trust, Children in Need, People’s Health Trust Active Communities Fund and West Midlands Combined Authority Green Grants Programme.
Councillor Adrian Andrew, deputy leader and portfolio holder for regeneration, said: “We’re pleased to continue our support to Caldmore Village Festival and very grateful and appreciative of the important service it provides to the community especially in its work with volunteers, schools, nurseries, fostering agencies and home-schooling parents.
“Extending this lease helps them continue their work to bring diverse communities together and help promote sustainability, environmental responsibility, health and wellbeing, and community participation and volunteering.
“As a council, we work with many community and voluntary associations both in the medium and longer term. We want to continue supporting these much-needed community services and it’s something reflected in our recently launched network of Walsall Connected hubs bringing customer services directly to the community.”
Mr Mohammed Arif, chair of Caldmore Village Festival Board, added: We are delighted and overjoyed with the lease extension and it will help us in our long-term planning and help us attract longer-term funding in the future.
“This garden is a green space for everyone to enjoy and it’s open nearly every day of the year. It’s where everyone has the chance to contribute and realise their potential, a green space for joy, learning and play, and a meeting place of people of all cultures, ages, abilities and backgrounds.”
Written by Jayne Howarth