Plymstock has long been described by some of its residents as an amalgamation of several distinct ‘villages’. Oreston, Elburton, Hooe, Staddiscombe, Goosewell and Turnchapel are each well-served by a variety of community projects, residents associations, church groups and village halls but now there is a concerted effort underway to see if they might all ‘join forces’ to better-connect all the many and varied community projects.
POP is working with local Councillor Rebecca Smith and Clare Russell – the Co-operative Pioneer for the area – meeting people from across the many different communities to try and see if some form of neighbourhood network might evolve. Stuart Jones, the neighbourhood network lead from POP and a resident of Hooe, says there’s no shortage of activity:
“There’s nearly fifty clubs and organisations in the Plymstock area but what’s lacking is the communication between all these groups: everyone knowing what everyone else is doing and then the means of being able to communicate this to us, the residents.”
The hope is that Plymstock will end up with an effective ‘network’ similar to that of other areas of Plymouth, such as Devonport and Efford through which residents are better-connected with each other and better-informed about what’s happening in their neighbourhood. For Stuart, it also has the potential to encourage greater collaborations between local organisations and to help them become more sustainable:
“We hope that through this,” says Stuart, “we might generate the opportunity for skills, knowledge and resources to be shared; where people can be directed to the right ‘community’ place and where projects might work together to bring more funding into the area making it better for everyone.”
Come along to our next POP Outreach. We’ll be at Plymstock Library, tomorrow, Tuesday the 21st of February between 9.30 & 1.30 come and meet the team and find out how POP can support your community.
