You are warmly invited to the next Energised Communities meeting in partnership with the Grosmont Community Shop Steering Group. Date of Next Meeting: Wednesday 15 October, 6-7.30pm in the Nave Purpose: Conduct an options appraisal for the village shop and (briefly) agree way forward for other Energised Communities priorities. Background: At the last meeting in July, we agreed the top priorities for the village that came out of the Grosmont Forever event (delivered by Energised Communities Programme). These are listed below as a reminder. One of the top priorities was to safeguard the village shop. Since our meeting, the landscape has changed dramatically with the shop’s sudden closure. As you will know Andrew and Karen have led the charge to try and safeguard a shop in the village and have established a steering group to take urgent action. I have been meeting Andrew and Karen regularly to advise and support and they have invited me to facilitate an options appraisal workshop to explore all the possible locations for a shop, including the existing one, and look at alternative ways to continue the services of a shop, in the event that permanent premises cannot be secured. This is a vital piece of work which will inform the best solution(s) and will benefit hugely from the collective knowledge and wisdom of the village. It will also provide crucial evidence for any potential future funder. Please have a think in advance about any locations or alternative ways of providing the services of a shop and feel free to share these in advance if you can’t make it to the meeting. There will be a short amount of time at the beginning of the workshop to briefly return to the wider priorities agreed in July to decide the best way forward. The key question for me is whether there are people in the village who would like to continue to explore the other priorities at the same time as safeguarding the shop and whether there is the capacity to look at multiple priorities in parallel. I look forward to hearing your views on this. As a reminder at our last meeting in July you prioritised the following issues: Energy: Explore community energy projects such as hydro, solar on agricultural buildings, and anaerobic digestion systems. Develop a “Village Plan for the Oil Ban” to coordinate retrofit support, work with planning authorities, share knowledge, and promote peer learning. Consider group purchasing of locally generated electricity and energy-saving measures to reduce individual costs. Transport and Active Travel: Explore ways to link the village to onwards public transport connections. Other Community Enhancements : Re-examine potential sites for a communal play area and explore whether it could be integrated with addressing wider community needs such as siting it alongside a growing space. Support the village shop’s sustainability through increased local use and complementary community services. This message has been sent to everyone who is on the Energised Communities mailing list. Please feel free to share with your friends, family and networks I look forward to seeing you at 6pm on 15 October in the Nave