Hyndburn Residents Celebrate Brookside Restoration Launch
An exciting environmental initiative, the Brookside Restoration Project, was officially launched by the Mayor of Hyndburn, Councillor Mike Booth on Thursday, 22nd August. The celebratory event was well attended by local residents, schools, businesses, volunteers, and Councillors.
The Major said: “Since Hyndburn Borough Council declared a climate emergency back in 2019, we continue to make climate action a top priority in everything that we do. The Brookside Restoration represents a huge step for climate action, both in terms of biodiversity recovery and engaging local people in the journey to net zero. Looking forwards, we are confident that the work here today will make real and lasting positive changes to the environment and the communities surrounding Brookside.’’
Following the purchase of the 87 acre Brookside industrial site in Stanhill Village, Oswaldtwistle, by Hyndburn Borough Council in 2022, the plan is to transform the space into a haven of biodiversity, habitat recovery, carbon capture and climate action.
Councillor Kimberley Whitehead, Portfolio Holder for Culture, Heritage, Parks and Open Spaces added “The next 18 months developmental phase of the project has been generously funded by the National Lottery Climate Action Fund and the Windfall Fund. We are looking forward to creating an improvement plan with exciting changes needed to achieve the transformation.”
The Brookside site has been part of Stanhill life since the 18th century and has been used for farming, mining, quarrying, and the textiles industry. Most famously and nationally significant, Stanhill is where James Hargreaves invented the spinning jenny in the 1760s, which kickstarted the industrial revolution of the textiles industry.
The Brookside Restoration project is being managed by Hyndburn’s community-owned environmental charity, the PROSPECTS Foundation, in partnership with Hyndburn Borough Council, Lancashire Wildlife Trust, Stanhill Village Community Association, Ribble Rivers Trust, and Proffitts CIC.
Alice Pooley, Brookside Restoration Officer at the PROSPECTS Foundation, delivered a talk about the project plans. She said “”It’s a bold and exciting project to be part of, and there’s a lot to do over the next year and a half. In that time, we’ll be working with our partners and volunteers to gather data, undertake surveys, explore ways to improve biodiversity and habitat recovery, improve accessibility, and create a climate action initiative that will help us address climate change on a local scale. The Brookside Restoration is for everyone and there will be lots of opportunities for people to get involved in workshops, walks, talks, citizen science days, and community activities throughout the project. Together, we have an opportunity to create something truly incredible, and I’d like to personally thank everyone who has supported the project already.”
If you would like to get involved, share your ideas, or if you would just like to follow the progress of the project, you can find out more on the PROSPECTS Foundation website or by signing up to the project newsletter. You can also contact the Project Coordinator Alice Pooley directly on 07760678087 or alice.pooley@prospectsfoundation.org.uk.
Background Information
Hyndburn Borough Council purchased the Brookside site in 2022 as a major opportunity for enhancement for nature recovery, climate action and community involvement. Hyndburn Borough Council declared a climate emergency in 2019.
The National Lottery Community Fund recently launched its strategy, ‘It starts with community’, which will underpin its efforts to distribute at least £4 billion of National Lottery funding by 2030. As part of this, the funder has four key missions, which are to support communities to come together, be environmentally sustainable, help children and young people thrive and enable people to live healthier lives.
National Lottery players raise over £30 million a week for good causes across the UK. Thanks to them, last year (2023/24) The National Lottery Community Fund awarded over half a billion pounds (£686.3 million) of life-changing funding to communities across the UK, supporting over 13,700 projects to turn their great ideas into reality.
The PROSPECTS Foundation is Hyndburn’s community-owned environmental charity. This year we are celebrating our 25th year of environmental action in Hyndburn. Our aim is to improve people’s quality of life through positive environmental action. By working with a diverse range of groups in Hyndburn, we aim to inspire young people; improve health and wellbeing; support communities; improve the environment; and encourage sustainable living. We can help local communities by providing practical assistance to develop environmental projects; Windfall grants to support community initiatives; a range of volunteer opportunities; a wide range of accredited training courses; and a website with up to date information on events and projects.
We work with people with all abilities from all walks of life but particularly try to engage with the most marginalised in our society who often miss out on the chance to get involved. We also support a network of PROSPECTS Panels in the neighbouring townships as well as schools, community groups and voluntary organisations to help them deliver their own ideas for improving the environment and the lives of their members/ service users.