How would you like Whaley Bridge to change?  What do you value about the community where we live?  Now you can have your say at a Community Conversation from 7pm-9.15pm on Thursday 7 July at the Bowling Club, 43 Buxton Road, Whaley Bridge.  (There’s plenty of car parking,)

It’s all part of a High Peak borough council project to help form the Core Strategy which will influence how and where High Peak will develop. The council is looking for your priorities for development in the area over the next 20 years. Some ideas which are bound to come up:

• Is the second bridge to the Bingswood industrial  estate still an overriding  wish from the whole town?
• What about the redevelopment  hopes for the transhipment warehouse, put on ice after a multi-thousand feasibility study?
• What about jobs – should there be a strategy to create more work, especially for young people? (How many university graduates from this area drift away to get work ?)
• What about encouraging Whaley Bridge as a tourist destination, not just a gateway to somewhere else?
• What about housing development?  Could the local services cope with more people here?
• What about regeneration?  Could Whaley Bridge become a more attractive  High Peak town with more money and imaginative ideas available?

‘Community conversations’ have already taken place in a number of places.  The New Mills consultation is the last of the meetings on 20 July.

Ian Huddlestone, executive councillor for regeneration, said::  “As we want residents to speak freely, we’ve brought in Rural Action Derbyshire and Planning with People as independent facilitators,  who will lead the events and report back to us. Each conversation will begin with a presentation, after which residents will be able to have their say.”

Jon Goldfinch, chairman of Whaley Bridge town council, said:  “This a great opportunity to show  the strength of Whaley Bridge’s ambitions.  I urge people to come along and make sure their opinions are heard.”

To reserve a place at the Whaley Bridge  community event, e-mail  ldf@highpeak.gov.uk or call 0845 129 7777 and ask for planning policy.

You can also visit www.highpeak.gov.uk/neighbourhood/communityconversations