Member Article

Treasured village meeting spot restored to its former glory

Local residents in Crawcrook have welcomed the refurbishment of a treasured meeting place by housing developer Keepmoat Homes.

The developer has restored an old seat at the edge of one of their new housing schemes in the village. The paved area around the seat has also been reinstated and extended as part of the work which has seen the development of 20 two and three bedroom homes at St Agnes Gardens.

Christine Curran, Land & Partnerships Manager at Keepmoat, said: “When we first discussed improving the village seat with people in the area, they clearly felt very attached to the original bench and asked if we could restore rather replace it – there is a lot of history associated with it that residents didn’t want to lose.

“At the end of last year, we decided to shot blast and powder coat the metal frame, replaced the wooden slats for the seat and back, and gave it several coats of durable wood stain varnish to make sure it lasts well. We’ve also improved the paved area around the seat and hope that people in Crawcrook will enjoy it all for many years to come.”

Councillor Jack Graham, Mayor of Gateshead and ward member for Crawcrook and Greenside, said: “There has always been a seat on this spot in living memory, it’s a great place to meet, have a chat and put the world to rights. It’s great to see the bench back here and looking better than ever.”

Councillor Helen Hughes, ward member for Crawcrook and Greenside, said: “The Crawcrook village seat has been well used for decades and is an important meeting place for all the local residents who like to get out and enjoy the fresh air. Now that it’s had some much-needed TLC, the seat and surrounding area looks marvellous. I’d like to thank Keepmoat Homes for going the extra mile and beautifully restoring the bench.”

The seat is situated at the village crossroads, making it an ideal place for local people to sit and watch the world go by.

The restoration was carried out by specialists MGM on behalf of Keepmoat.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Craig Downs .