News and Views from BCA November 2023

BCA E-Newsletter November 2023

A chance to celebrate BCA's Volunteer Trustees

The dedicated trustees of BCA volunteer their time and knowledge selflessly and deserve recognition, especially during Trustees Week. They and their efforts are often hidden in the background, but they play an indispensable role in guiding and nurturing Buxton's leading local environmental charity, enabling it to achieve its goals in looking after the built and natural environment of Buxton. Their voluntary service is a testament to the power of community spirit.

Coming from a diverse range of backgrounds and bringing a wealth of knowledge and experience to their roles their contributions extend far beyond the boardroom; they offer strategic direction, foster innovation, and ensure that the charity's mission remains aligned with the needs of the community it serves, all while volunteering their time without any financial compensation.

Their motivation is fueled by a genuine desire to make Buxton a better place to live in and to visit, and their unwavering commitment to the causes they support is inspiring.

Halloween is just around the corner, and the team that bring your the fantastic Santa Cave experience have turned their hands to Halloween.. Are you feeling brave enough to venture underground.

Book your place on our Creepy Cavern Halloween tour

Read about the BCA in the latest edition of the Ranger magazine.

Words by Simon Fussell
Photos by Frag Last

The Ranger Magazine

Jon White gave a talk to BCA members "Green Space is not enough, do we need to reclaim the streets?" For those who missed the talk or if you want to watch it again here is the video.

Jon White outlined his ideas for a cleaner, safer Buxton to BCA members at their recent members talk

There’s gonna be a riot down in Water Street tonight

“Green space is not enough, we need to reclaim the streets” was the title of the BCA members talk given by Jon White, BCA trustee and Chair of the Places and Spaces group.

But this was not rallying cry to rip up the paving stones, and man the flaming barricades, wearing yellow vests, clutching copies of the Guardian and shouting "What do we want? Radical change, when do we want it? in due course."

This was no revolutionary manifesto but a considered and studious journey from Reggio Emilia an Italian city with a high proportion of budding child Caravaggio's amongst its 170,000 inhabitants, to the not so quiet back streets of Buxton, the quarry town, nestling amongst the greenery of the planation woodlands once of the Chatsworth estate and now beloved and cared for by Buxton Civic Association, a town dotted with Georgian buildings against a splatter of more mundane functional architecture. In essence a quarry town, with a bit of Georgian attitude.

We heard about the transformation of a neglected grot spot into a beautiful and award winning sensory garden, but how the peace and quiet was spoiled by the screech of brakes, as cars competed for the lack of space on the narrow congested and badly planned road system. We were shown pictures of minor accidents.

But all this could change, if only sensible policies were adopted and a one way system created to allow wide pavements and freedom for the pedestrian to stroll and amble along and across the road as the fancy took him. (Or her) The air would be cleaner, the environment safer, it would be a better place to live.

Some argued that this was too little, that the car should be banned from the streets all together. What we needed were brave politicians, to champion the rights of the pedestrian over the motorist, to force through the changes needed. Some recalled fondly of playing cricket on the backstreets of Bradford.

But the argument and evidence was compelling. The audience was won over, some went away excited hoping for change, others convinced but frustrated by the reality that in Britain today change is hard, and resisted by those in charge.

Perhaps we do need to reclaim the streets, to man the barricades. Perhaps.

But as people left for the sanctuary of their homes they were greeted by a heavy and persistent rain, a timely reminder perhaps of why reclaiming the streets is not as easy here as it is in a warmer clime.

BCA's house journal is now online. This edition looks at the built environment of Buxton

The second edition of the Buxtonian, the inhouse journal of Buxton Civic Association (BCA), is now online. This edition focuses on the built environment of Buxton. We are grateful to Michael Williams CEO of Buxton International Festival, Julian Cohen author of Buxton Pubs a social history, and Trevor Gilman Architect and local historian for their contributions. We hope you enjoy reading this edition. The next edition will focus on Water and will be published in December 2023.

The Buxtonian published on Issu

Recruitment prospectus for CEO for BCA

Steve Orridge local naturalist and BCA member presents the results of the 2021 butterfly survey.

Buxton Butterfly Survey 2021

The story of Grinlow - the arrival of humans