Behind this door, Richard is building a community spirit (From Gazette)

Behind this door, Richard is building a community spirit

5:41pm Wednesday 25th November 2009 in News By Gareth Palmer

BEHIND the front door of an otherwise nondescript house in Colchester lives a man with an ambitious ideal.

Richard Smith wants to help build a community on his new housing estate.

He lives in Berechurch Road, one of the thousands of homes built on former garrison land, which is home to the Abbeyfield Community Project.

The project, set up by six churches in the area, aims to bring people together on the new Marlborough Place, Churchill Gate and Solus estates.

Mr Smith has taken over from Jane Mason as the project’s community worker.

He has moved from Barrack Street, to live in the four-bedroom house where he works.

He lives upstairs in the house with wife Katie and six-week-old baby, Moses.

The downstairs, two rooms, a kitchen and a garden, are used for community meetings, a baby group and prayer sessions.

Mr Smith, 33, said: “I’ve got a new house, a new job and a new baby, all at the same time.

“While there’s a lot of work involved, this is the opportunity we’ve been looking for as a family. We’re really excited about it.”

Mrs Mason worked for the project for three years, and helped set up the Marlborough Places Residents’ Association.

Mr Smith said: “I aim to continue her approach, meeting my neighbours to see what they need, and encourage people to meet these needs.

“Like anyone else moving house, I’m finding my feet and my work is very much at the looking and listening phase.

“All I know is everyone is important and God cares about people and creating communities.”

Frequent criticisms have been made that new estates are springing up with little thought for the idea of developing a neighbourhood, with houses built at the expense of community facilities.

On the Marlborough Place development, there is a small children’s play area, but no shops.

Mr Smith’s house, bought and adapted by local churches, is the only community space.

What has brought residents together on the estate is a long-struggle to get roads built to agreed standards, rather than a slalom course of potholes.

With thousands of extra houses set to be built in Colchester in the coming decades, church groups and councillors have been vocal in calling for the mistakes of past building not to be repeated.

Mr Smith drew a comparison between his former home in New Town, and the estates built in Berechurch, Mile End, the Hythe and Stanway, where similar community-building initiatives are being started by local churches.

He continued: “Each place has its distinctive character, its advantages and disadvantages.

“At the beginning of the last century, New Town was a new housing estate like this area is now, and has had the time for a community to develop since.

“It was built more with community in mind, as housing for one or two major employers, and has churches, pubs and shops in it.

“These have provided the connection points for people to meet their neighbours.

“A community is a hard thing to build with bricks and mortar, but it does need welcoming spaces where people can gather, which is what this house is about.”

For Mr Smith, who previously worked in nature conservation with Colchester Council and Essex Wildlife Trust, creating a community is all about providing the opportunity to get people together.

He said: “It’s all about getting people to talk to each other, know each other and begin to care about each other. We use this house to do that with a weekly group for babies and craft activities for children.

“We’re also inviting people to a Christmas meal, particularly for those who might be feeling lonely.”

For more information, visit www.abbeyfieldcommunity.com