IN a hidden corner of Heptonstall a group of keen growers is bringing an abandoned allotment area back into use and sowing the seeds for a closer community.
The 25 villagers are working on two sites made available by Heptonstall Social and Bowling Club that lay unused for decades. The club was approached by the group and voted to rent out the land to help meet local need for growing spaces.
Club treas
urer Jill McKeown said the land behind the club was completely overgrown and members were only too pleased to see the sites being used again by Heptonstall Allotment Gardeners Society (HAGS). The group held its first formal meeting in January and has come a long way in its first six months.
"It used to be allotments during the Second World War but you couldn't tell they were here when we started this. But once you start digging you can see where people used to have their greenhouses," said Pete Ruse, who chairs HAGS and works one of the 14 plots with his teenage son David.
"When we took it on the area just looked like moorland," said Debbie Wilkinson, one of several of the allotment holders who has turned out on a baking, sunny morning for the communal work day held on the second Sunday of the month. They meet to tackle jobs like improving the access and generally tidying up the sites. The group has put together a constitution and formed an allotment society with a committee and hopes to apply for funding for big future schemes like water provision.
"It is still evolving as a project. There's lots of enthusiasm and it is a very vibrant group," said Pete. "My son is disabled and bringing him here to help has been a way of including him more in the life of the village. It's healthy for him and for the village. It is healthy on lots of levels and it is good for community cohesion.
"The fact it is here is bringing people out from in front of the telly. For some of us our lives would not have crossed if we hadn't come together on this."
Frances Earnshaw said she had limited knowledge of food growing before taking her allotment but has been surprised at what she has already achieved.
"We can't believe our luck because we don't have a garden and I have only had windowboxes before. I wanted peas in the pod and so far they are doing well. It is incredible how the whole thing has evolved from being just grass and stones."
Her daughter Kaysha is a regular visitor to the plot and the family has created a small pond, currently alive with tadpoles and water lilies which amuses the children while the adults crack on with the work.
"My favourite thing here is the pond. It is really good to have some animals on allotments," said Kaysha, checking the tadpoles' progress with her friends.
Mark and Kirsten Holman recently moved to Heptonstall after taking early retirement and plan to be as self-sufficient as they can from their plot.
