GRCC welcomes Defra on county visit

On 14th November, GRCC was pleased to host three colleagues from Defra along with others from ACRE who came to see first-hand examples of successful community-led projects.

Our first stop was the Gloucester Sluices in Cirencester to talk to volunteers about the huge community effort on the WILD (Water Integration in Local Delivery) project to clear water courses and maintain an environmentally sustainable and controllable water flow through the town and surrounding areas.



After a homemade lunch of Gloucestershire products, it was off to Uley to see a small affordable housing scheme on a rural exception site in the centre of the village. GRCC explained the community involvement throughout the process supported by Uley Parish Council and Gloucestershire Rural Housing Partnership.

We rounded off the day with a walk to the vibrant community store in Uley to talk to some of the committee and volunteers about the challenges and successes of taking over a village shop.