The Bank Top Community Partnership was established in October 2003 with the formation of a Steering Group. This group worked hard to develop a Constitution that was formerly adopted at the Inaugural General Meeting in April 2004.
A Management Committee of 12 residents and 3 non-voting co-opted members managed the Partnership for the following year. They met on a regular basis and were incredibly successful in their first year of management. Strong partnerships have developed with the local community, including church groups, the police, residents groups and voluntary groups.
The Annual General Meeting in April 2005 was very well attended and reflected the strong support for this relatively new partnership. A new Management Committee was formed at the AGM. Many of the previous Management Committee members were re-elected and some new volunteers joined. Also at the AGM, the members agreed to adopt a five-year Action Plan - pdf document. This document outlines all that the Partnership wants to achieve to improve the quality of life for Bank Top residents.
A whole range of activities are being developed and driven forward by the Bank Top Community Partnership. The Partnership is committed to improving the local environment, in particular the area of Eastbourne Park. To this end, a sub group has been formed called 'Friends of Eastbourne Park'. This group has met regularly since May 2005 and in partnership with Darlington Borough Council has already made a big difference to the park. New picnic benches and bins have been placed next to the play area. Volunteers have been involved with planting out summer and winter bedding and have planted lots of spring bulbs. New seats have been installed and dead plants and overgrown hedges have been removed. Funding was obtained for wildlife boxes and these have now been installed. Three new notice boards have been erected that will provide information about upcoming events and activities. The group are planning community events in the park to encourage more people to use the park and a calendar of events is to be produced. A very successful Community Fete was held in July and at least 300 people attended.
The group is actively seeking new members particularly from local residents and users of the park. The Friends meet at 10.00 am on the second Thursday of the month at the Park Pavillion. If you are interested please come along.
The hard work of the Friends of Eastbourne Park has recently been acknowledged nationally. Diane Gelson, the chairperson for the group was chosen as one of 350 national winners for the Respect Awards for Taking a Stand. This award comes with a £1000 grant to reinvest in the community. The Friends also received an award of £5,000 from Awards for All. This money is earmarked for improvements to the pavillion.
In April, the Friends were also chosen as Communigate's 'Pick of the Month' for April. The prize was a Praktica DC21 digital camera. Have a look at the winning communigate website If you are interested in joining the Friends please contact Norman Maltby (see below for contact details.)
Up to date information on the work of Bank Top Community Partnership can be found in the Bank Top Bugle:
Bank Top Bugle Summer 2006 - pdf document
Bank Top Bugle Summer 2005 - pdf document
Bank Top Bugle Spring 2005 - pdf document
More detail on some of the Bank Top successes can be found in the annual report - pdf document
The minutes to recent meetings can be found here.
Minutes 13 September 2006 - pdf document
Minutes 14 June 2006 - pdf document
Minutes 10 May 2006 - pdf document
Minutes 8 March 2006 - pdf document
Minutes 8 February 2006 - pdf document
Minutes 12 January 2006 - pdf document