Firstly thank you to all the many people who came to speak to us at our stall which we set up on the High Street on Saturday morning 25th April. We had on display our new promotional brochure and sign boards prepared by Bob Hickson which help us to answer the question “What does a Civic Society do?” by illustrating some of the various projects we have undertaken and are currently working on. (For the record: our aim is to Improve the Appearance of our Villages and the Quality of Life within them”). We were pleased to hear the views of many residents and especially to hear of eyesores which people felt needed addressing. We recruited 17 new members (£1 annual subscription) and 11 new family members (£2 per family) and we also renewed memberships of 7 members and 6 families. Together with donations we received £68 for our funds so thanks to all who came to see us and to our volunteers who manned the stall. Of great importance & encouraging for us were the many comments we received from passersby who stopped to express their support for the work the Society is doing.

Eyesores. We have tried over the last few years to encourage people to eliminate eyesores and improve the appearance of our streets. A lot of the street furniture (such as public benches, lamp posts, sign post, litter bins etc) and some footpaths and roads in our district are in a bad state of maintenance. There are potholes and many lamp posts and sign posts need repainting. Most of these items are owned by Shropshire Council and a much smaller amount by the Parish Councils. Some eyesores are buildings/land etc in private ownership. A new campaign led by Bob Hickson and Peter Leigh has been initiated and we are making a list of the main eyesores which we will bring to the attention of the councils/owners so if anyone has an eyesore which they wish us to add to our list please contact us. (Bob Hickson T: 373181)

Ex Barclays Bank Building (Station Rd). You will all be aware that after Barclays vacated the building some years ago a planning application by the owners to turn it into several apartments was approved and work started. Since then work has been spasmodic with stops and starts and then work stopped completely several months ago leaving the building with an unacceptable appearance in one of our main streets at the centre of the village. We carried out a search and located the company which owned the building but which by then had ceased trading. We then located its parent company and wrote to ask them to let us know their intentions and programme to complete the work. We did not receive a reply so we have tracked down the directors of the company and have written to each of them and have now received a response. They say work will recommence in about a month or so and they would complete the project. We also brought their attention to the broken door which is dangerously hanging off their garage at the rear of the building, in the corner of the Crown car park, and they promised to repair it in the meantime. We have passed their contact details to Albrighton Parish Council who asked for them so that they could also write to them.

Rescue of the Station Masters Building. Since our plan to turn it into a Heritage Centre had to be abandoned we nevertheless continued to seek a new use to prevent it falling into even more dilapidation. We were contacted by two potential tenants/purchasers and, at the owner’s request, have acted as liaison between the parties and have tried to facilitate a good outcome. Discussions between the building owner and potential tenants/purchasers continue.

Villages Entrances Scheme. Under John Bulmer’s expert guidance our volunteers have continued to carry out clearance, weeding and maintenance at several entrances. At the junction of Kingswood Rd/A41 the dozens of bushes and trees planted some time ago are now becoming well established although it may be a few years before the full impact of the scheme is seen. In the meantime the many daffodils planted there gave us a good show this spring. John and his volunteers have worked hard at Patshull Rd/Patshull Lane/A464 junction and this Village Entrance is looking particularly well. Next working party meets at 9am at Patshull Rd/A464 on Saturday 27th June – if you can spare an hour please come. (For information: John Bulmer Tel :372291 and see our website). The daffodils planted by Mike Pitchford and John Foster and their teams at Newport Rd and elsewhere were wonderful, especially the large display at the roundabout at Loak Rd/Bowling Green Lane which was spectacular.

For more information about the Society please see
www AlbrightonAndDistrictCivicSociety.co.uk     or contact:
Peter Woodman –Chairman (T: 372225) 31/32 High St  or Rod Smith -Secretary (T: 372765)