By Jill Stocks
Next time you are on New Road Side in Horsforth you will notice there’s an extra splash of colour. And it’s all the result of a huge community effort – and hanging baskets with a difference.
New Road Side’s new sustainable knitted hanging baskets are part of a bigger project to improve the area led by Horsforth In Bloom and supported by local town and city councillors, businesses and organisations.
Penny Pinn, from Horsforth In Bloom, told us about the project: “Horsforth in Bloom are working with Horsforth Town Council and local businesses to make floral displays more sustainable. For many years thousands of pounds have been spent by the council on buying and watering hanging baskets.
“While these can look colourful, they’re so high up for safety reasons that they lose impact and they are also not sustainable, due to using annual bedding and large amounts of water.
“So instead we’re planning new, larger ground level planters, with climate resilient planting, seating and art work. This is being trialled on New Road Side.”
The new planters will arrive in due course and until then the area has been brightened with the knitted hanging baskets, helped by the community. Penny said: “As a transition whilst the new beds get established, there’s a community project to make hanging baskets decorated with knitted, crocheted and felted flowers.
“Many residents and local groups are taking part, including a felted flower workshop run by Penny Lewis, funded by MICE money from our City Councillors. This was so popular it was fully booked within 24 hours!”
The felt flower workshop was held at Stocked, a co-working space and shop on New Road Side to ‘celebrate the art of making and doing’.
Having established the very popular Slow Rise Bakery across the road with her partner Nick Simpson, Nerys Hudson was keen for Stocked to also be a part of the community, and offered the space for the workshop for free.
She told us: “I always wanted Stocked to be part of the local community and for me I feel that interplay between community and business is really important, particularly when it comes to helping high streets and helping communities grow.
“I think there’s so many unexpected things you can do when you have a physical space and for me I feel like it was always going to be a part of Stocked that was very much involved in that.
“It’s not just about footfall, it’s about making places nicer, making businesses feel like they also can contribute and help to build communities and make it a nicer place and that’s the type of business I personally want to do.”
Slightly further up New Road Side is Art K who have also been involved with the project and recently ran a free workshop for Horsforth in Bloom and Horsforth Hall Park Community Garden volunteers to make lino print decorations for the new planters.
Louisa Young is the Art Club Manager and Teacher and Stacey Lawrence is an assistant art teacher at Art K. They told us “It was a pleasure having the ladies and gents from Horsforth In Bloom for the afternoon. They had an afternoon of lino printing inspired by leaves and flowers and nature to decorate the new wooden planters around Horsforth.
“It was exciting that we could be a part of the community project.”
Louisa added that they love the addition of the sustainable hanging baskets right outside their door:
“They’re beautiful. They lift the road because it’s a very busy road. It’s lovely to have some colour.”
Another community organisation involved with creating the hanging baskets is the Sisters of Horsforth WI. As part of their craft group they have been making flowers from a variety of materials, including wool, felt and ribbon, to create their own hanging basket for the project.
The Sisters of Horsforth only recently celebrated their first birthday but are already very active in the community. The next project for their craft group is creating bunting and knitted and crocheted animals for this year’s Walk Of Art.
Cllr Simon Dowling, of Horsforth Town Council, told us about their involvement in the project.
He said: “Horsforth Town Council is pleased to work with Horsforth in Bloom, businesses and Cllr Bromley to replace planted hanging baskets with knitted baskets and support this initiative to enhance the New Road Side shopping area.
“It has become much harder to water planted baskets in recent summers. These knitted baskets look lovely and will bring a smile to people’s faces. They will also last much better during hot spells and together with the bigger ground level planters to follow will provide a more environmentally sustainable way of enhancing New Road Side.”
Cllr Emmie Bromley (Lab, Horsforth) is excited about the project and the difference it will make to the area.
She said: “The New Road Side Project is beginning to take shape, in the first of many steps, by welcoming new hanging baskets. I support this sustainable model designed by local organisations, showcasing Horsforth skills and artistic creations!
“I thank Horsforth Town Council especially for engaging with this transition suggested by Horsforth in Bloom and I, with Leeds City Councils The Arium’s support.”
Emma Kerrawn who owns Hoc Loco on New Road Side loves the difference the baskets have made:
“I really love seeing what is a bit of a concrete jungle on New Road Side being brightened up with something that brings a little smile to everyone’s face when they spot them, but is just a bit more sustainable and easy to care for, and involves the local community as well.”
And community is very much the key to the whole project as Penny added: “It’s a partnership between Horsforth In Bloom, Horsforth Town Council, the City Council, and the businesses on New Road Side who are all working together to improve New Road Side, to make it a better shopping experience, and also make it more sustainable, more climate resilient and just a nicer place to be.”
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