Membership
First of all, a big thank you to the 296 residents of Grindleford Parish who have already bought membership shares in the community shop. This has helped us raise almost £3500 already. We are aware we missed some of you when we did our door to door campaign last autumn but don’t worry, you will have your chance to join and support the shop in this and many other ways over the coming weeks and months. A large number of membership certificates have been distributed and there are a few more to come out.
Feasibility Study
We received a grant from DEFRA for the community shop feasibility study which was extended to take more into account the Change of Use Application was submitted. A summary of the findings will be circulated to members by email prior to the public meeting. More detail will be available at the public meeting.
Temporary Shop
The shop committee feel that we have been without a village shop for too long already and that we should explore temporary shop facilities whilst more permanent premises are being sought. In the short term we think we need about £20,000 to even fit out and stock a temporary shop. As many of you know from your own efforts, fundraising needs a long lead time to produce the cash when it’s needed.
Fundraising
With the above in mind, we appointed a fund raising committee comprising Diane Wilson, Becky Harby, Lionel Stout, Penny Reynolds and Alan Fairbrother. They have met a couple of times and begun to generate some great ideas about how to meet our initial goal. We want the fundraising to take advantage of our beautiful location, be inclusive for all residents, present social opportunities and be fun for organisers and participants, as well as raising lots of funds! With those objectives in mind these are the sort of things we are exploring:
All grant opportunities from local, regional and national organisations (eg Parish Council, County Council, Peak Park, National Lottery) These have the potential to produce chunks of cash but miss some of the other objectives above.
Donations from individuals and local village groups / associations (some individuals have already been very generous) All donations are welcome and go a long way to demonstrating the “matched funding” which many of the grant awarding bodies require.
Investment Shares for those who want to further show their commitment financially to this venture and earn interest on their investment.
Locally organised activities with a proven fund raising potential. A few of these are listed below and we would welcome involvement from all residents in their preparation and delivery so they meet all our objectives.
A cycle ride around the Peak Park – The Grindleford Goat. This will be a “sportif” style event with routes suitable for all levels of keen cyclists. Given our location we think it will attract enthusiasts from local and regional areas. It will draw on experienced cycling and outdoor event organisers and we would expect a large turnout but are limiting numbers to 200 for our first attempt. We hope the event will become an annual fixture in much the same way that the Grindleford Gallop has become a firm feature on every runner’s calendar. We will need Marshalls on the day as well as event supporters and organisers so everyone can get involved in this spectacle. The planned date is 14th September to coincide with the first Peak District Cycling Festival so make a note in your diaries. If you want to participate or help in any way with our “Tour de Grindleford”, please ring Alan Fairbrother on 630160.
Another chance to do your bit comes with an Auction of Promises on Saturday 29th June in the Sir William at 8pm. We are hoping to achieve around 200 promises and whilst a week in a holiday house in Nice would be nice; we would also appreciate a wide range of promises – suggestions so far include a pillion motor bike ride around Derbyshire, a batch of chocolate brownies, car washing to a basket of ironing. If you can make a ‘promise’ for us please email grindlefordauction2013@gmail.com providing details and your name and contact details. Those without e-mail can ring Diane Wilson on 631517. We are hoping to have a programme ready for distribution at the carnival and there will be chance to put in sealed bids and possibly even telephone bidding on the night. If you have any queries please contact as above and we will get back to you asap. Most of all we’d like to see you there on the night with cash in hand – entry will be free!
Don’t miss our Plant Sale at the Pavilion Car Park in May and afterwards for a few weeks outside the dental surgery. Tim and Penny Reynolds are organising this successful annual event again and have agreed that all the proceeds will go to the Village Shop this year. If you have any plants to donate please contact Penny on 630023. Otherwise please look out for posters setting the actual date and come along to choose your plants and donate generously.
If you have a bright idea for fundraising do contact one of the fundraising group listed above to discuss how it could be implemented.
That’s all for now. If you have any questions please get in touch on info@grindlefordshop.co.uk or ring one of our committee whose details are on our website www.grindlefordshop.co.uk.