As you may be aware, taking Railway Gardens from idea to reality took some time, and over the years we’ve often met together as a community to build a vision for the site, explore how the space could work for different people, and hash out some of the details. It was an inspiring process to listen to and learn from so many local residents and organisations in order to bring this project to life.
Railway Gardens may be open now, but that doesn’t mean we want to stop listening and learning from you! In fact, it’s more important than ever, with the project in its early days and still taking baby steps, that your voice is heard. As part of our commitment to ensuring this space is led by the community, for the community, we’ll be holding three Community Assemblies each year where you’ll be invited to help shape the next stage of the project.
Our very first Community Assembly will take place on October 15th, 10:30am – 12:30pm – and while we’re still working to get our hub finished, Oasis are kindly hosting the Assembly.
So – what happens at a Community Assembly? Well, first we’ll share some updates over a cuppa and some cake. We want to let you know the latest news about the seemingly endless quest to complete the community hub, the build of the outdoor classroom, and other news from the site. We’ll also be able to share some more details about volunteering, regular opening hours (hooray!) and more.
Next we’re going to hold something called a World Cafe. If you’ve not been part of a World Cafe before, it’s simply a method for holding discussions in large groups, and making sure all opinions, perspectives, and experiences get a chance to be heard. We’ll be discussing topics relating to the next steps for the project – we’ve got a few ideas for discussion but this is your Assembly so if there’s something specific you’d like to discuss please email hannah@greensquirrel.co.uk to let us know, we would really like to hear from you.
Finally, we’ll be asking for your feedback on how you feel things are going so far – and we’ll make sure you can provide it anonymously so everyone feels they can share their feedback honestly.
Above all, we want this event to be fun, friendly, and a chance to hear from as many people as possible. Here’s how you can help make it a success…
- Please do share this blog post with anyone who might be interested or bring someone along with you – friends, neighbours, your school, your community group, your mum – anyone at all! The more people we hear from, the better Railway Gardens can support everyone in the community.
- Please consider registering a free place if you’d like to receive an email reminder closer to the time.
- If you can bake a cake or some biscuits that would be wonderful!
Do let us know if you have any ideas, comments or suggestions for the Assembly – otherwise we can’t wait to see you on October 15th!
