Test Valley Borough Council has awarded community group Bringing Together Andover CIC £300 through the Councillor Community Grant scheme.
Bringing Andover Together CIC is a community organisation focused on uniting Andover and surrounding villages/towns through events and shared experiences.
Volunteers have attended the town’s Four Fun Fridays events this year, encouraging residents to take part in their latest community activity. Dubbed the ‘Our Guildhall’ project, this venture has allowed more than 300 people from across the local area to contribute to a community-based piece of art.
Visitors to the town’s Four Fun Fridays events have been invited to place a thumbprint of paint onto a line drawing of the Guildhall. Residents also have the opportunity to learn about the history of the Guildhall, with old photos and documents being displayed under the gazebo as discovered and sourced from the local archives in Winchester.
Dmitrijs Meiksans, the Director of Bringing Together Andover CIC said: “This has been a lovely project to work on. I have really enjoyed playing a part in bringing together the community through this shared goal.
“The Guildhall is an iconic building that has been at the heart of the community for centuries, and this project is a way of honouring its history”.
St Mary’s Ward councillors Iris Andersen, Jan Budzynski and Victoria Harber approved the grant. Councillor Iris Andersen said: “We are so pleased to support this wonderful project.
“The Guildhall is a landmark to the town and it’s a brilliant idea to create art for the community, by the community.”
The Test Valley Borough Council Councillor Community Grant scheme helps to fund community-led initiatives up to two-thirds of the overall cost. Local councillors allocate up to £1,000 to projects that they identify as meeting a need in the community based on feedback and ideas from residents.
