Barrow wins
Best Village Award
Keen–eyed residents will have noticed
an addition to the Cotes Road corner
area. It is the Leicester Mercury
sponsored Best Village Award sign,
won by Barrow in the Leicestershire &
Rutland Best Village Competition (for
villages with a population over 5,000).
So how has this come about? In March a
small group of parish councillors met to
produce Barrow’s entry.With the April
1st deadline looming, they and Parish
Clerk Lesley Bell, are to be
congratulated in submitting such a
comprehensive but concise bid.
The competition is divided into seven
categories but every entry must include ‘Building community life’ and in addition
Barrow chose ‘Village Venture’ and ‘Older
People’. Under the first category, the village
was easy to promote. Here is an excerpt
from the submission:
‘Barrow offers something for all its
residents, from the youngest to the oldest,
from the fittest to the less so; it caters for
wide and varied interests and has a vibrant
and caring community.We have thriving
shops, library, excellent schools and preschool
groups, comprehensive health care,
good transport links and pubs, restaurants
and takeaways to suit most tastes.We have
good children’s play areas and the Council
of Churches is reinvigorating Christian life
within the village.’
Community spirit
and inclusion
Answering 14 searching questions under
the headings ‘Community spirit andinclusion’,‘People in need’ and ‘Facilities
and activities’, the group was able to
highlight what makes Barrow a lively place.
Community groups together with contact
numbers are listed in the Community
Association publication ‘Who Goes’
(available at the Library and on the village
website www.barrowuponsoar.org.uk) and
you may be surprised at their number and
range including sport, keep fit and
slimming, groups for young and older
people, gardening, panto, dance, churches
and twinning.A grand total of 15 annual
events are held from Christmas lights and
street fair to the summer bike rides.The
community and parish council websites,
Barrow Voice and other newsletters and
notice boards keep villagers informed.
Mike Morley, chair of the Millennium
Group produced an interesting entry for
the Village Venture category. He described
the conception and progress of the
Millennium Park, its time zone and
sculpture. Native tree planting, wild flowers
and future ambitious plans for the Delph
Hole were all featured.
A hive of activity and fun
In the ‘Best project by or for elderlypeople’,Tina Long of the Bishop Beveridge
Club president and her committee wrote a
compelling submission. Did you know that
their membership it 110+.Their extensive
activities and support for their members is
astonishing. Owning its own beautifully
maintained premises, the Club is a hive of
activity, fun and information. If you are over
60 and not a member, you are missing out!
The judges toured the village
unaccompanied and then met Parish
Council, Millennium Group and Bishop
Beveridge Club representatives before
visiting both sites.The results which were
announced later at the Leicester Mercury
building were:
Winner of the Best Village Award (over
5000 people) – Barrow upon Soar - £500
Winner of Category 6 (Older People) – Bishop Beveridge Club - £300.
Tina Long accepted the well-deserved
award from Coun. Marie Slater at a club
meeting which included cake and
champagne. PC chair Ted Rodgers received
the village award from Lady Martin on
behalf of Barrow. It recognises that
community life is thriving, with voluntary
and community groups working alongside
the Parish Council to make Barrow a
desirable and enjoyable place to live – and certainly a busy one!
Lilian Middleton
With thanks to the Parish Council for
supplying information for this article.
