Foresters, Melksham, Wiltshire

Background

The Foresters is on the edge of the market town of Melksham and is used by locals in the main as a sports and games community pub.

The licensees, Beverley and Nick Dempsey have been tenants at The Foresters for three years and they also raise funds for local charities offering the pub’s various bars as community meeting rooms for clubs, teams and local groups.

Project Summary

This pub has a large car park and garden. Beverley was keen to create a space in the garden for the community to use for different events. A grant from the Community Services fund has helped towards the cost of a new patio base and some new fencing to separate the car park from the garden making it safer for children to play in the garden. New garden furniture has been sourced, some planters are being built and the pubs has a good base to add more to this more community-focused garden.

Outcomes

• The garden area is much safer for children to play.
• ‘Forestfest’, an annual event for the local community young and old will be easier to manage.
• When the schools go back some children will have outdoor supervised lessons in the garden area.

Lessons to learn

Even a small grant can make a big impact in a project this like and encourages other stakeholders to invest in a community-based project.