Hucknall residents' group to fold this month after no-one steps up to take on running it

Reach Out started in its current form in 2003 but before then, in the 1990s, there had been Hucknall Partnership Group, which met at the John Godber Centre, and then Better Estates, which met at Salterford Road Scout Hut.

The latter came about from a local area forum in the late 90s where it was decided to form residents sub-groups in different areas of the town.

In West Hucknal,l this was set up by the Rev Christine Browne, from St Peter and St Paul’s, who became chairman with Sally Wyatt as secretary.

Two of the first things to be set up by the group were a toy library and a parenting skills class.

In 2000, Sally became chair with Davina Williams as secretary before the Rev Stuart Batten took over the role of chair in 2002 and the group became Reach Out Residents in 2003.

In 2006, when Mr Batten moved on the Rev Vanessa Hollingworth took over as chairman.

That year saw the start of the group’s tree planting initiatives with trees planted near the football pitches on Astral Grove which are now well established.

Sally said: “We also planted daffodils in the trees and what is so lovely is that residents, over the years, have added snowdrops and in the spring it is really worth a look.

In 2010, Sally again took over as chairman and meetings moved to Holgate Academy where they were regularly attended by more than 50 people and many statutory bodies and councillors.

Sally said: “One of the constant attendees has been Trentbarton – we have had a wonderful relationship with them.

“When they cut out one of the buses to west Hucknall, we were instrumental in seeing it reinstated.”

The group was also proactive in 2013 when it won a planning enquiry against the developers of the Rolls-Royce airfield who wanted to put a road from the bypass to the industrial site across a footpath youngsters used to access a nearby stream.

The group also worked with Ashfield Council and Holgate Academy to set up the bike tracks on Nabb Park and Milton Rise playground and raised £6,000 towards the town’s mining memorial on the changing rooms at Nabb Park.

In 2019, they persuaded the council to plant a Christmas tree on Nabb Park, but after the first carol singing event there that year, the lights and baubles were vandalised.

Sally said: “We decided knitted baubles were the way to go and the following year the community presented us with a load of knitted ones they had done.”

In recent years, the group has supported Holgate’s Christmas appeal and Easter children’s hospital appeal and the Keycraft and OT Christmas charity events.

However, in 2020, the group’s secretary stepped down and in June last year, Sally announced she would be standing down this year and warned the group would fold if new people did not take up the running of it.

With no-one coming forward, it has been announced the group will close this month with its final meeting on May 23 at Holgate Academy at 6.30pm.

Sally said: “It would be lovely to see past and present members for this farewell meeting.”