Representatives of various Ross-on-Wye organisations lined up to say a huge thank you to Ross Town Council at the annual Town Meeting on Monday, April 30th.

Brain Lampert of Ross and Monmouth Sea Cadets said that the unit would have had to close if the Town Council had not been prepared to lease them Homs Road car park and provide a grant for the new fire alarm system needed.

The unit raised £40,000 to move their buildings and they had also had to purchase ‘at great expense’ security fencing. They were able to retain the old toilet block which has been refitted with male and female toilets and a galley kitchen for the Cadets to use.

He said it was when they were doing the final checks they realised the fire system from the old building could not be used in the new site so they applied for a grant to Ross Town Council

Without it the 35 Cadets, who showed great dedication during the upheaval of moving, could not have returned.

Alison Fletcher of Age UK spoke about the potential life saving work they had been able to carry out thanks to a Council grant. They organised a day testing electric blankets, out of 33 people who attended half their blankets failed and were replaced. As faulty blankets are a serious cause of house fires Alison said this was a great result.

She then spoke on behalf of EnviroAbility and the shop mobility scheme. She said it is one of the few schemes in the country which is donation only and is very popular.

Robin Fletcher and Geoff Jones explained that their grant was used to help towards the cost of provided ship timing for their major fundraising event for Ross4Acorns. These are the 10K, 5K and fun runs held on the first Sunday in September.

Robin said that thanks to the grant they can give more to the Charity which helps children and the professional timing system event also attracts many serious runners and families to Ross.

Attracting visitors and providing them with information is part of the work of the new Ross Tourism Association. Thanks to a grant they were able to publish town maps and walking trails. Yolande said that it would be useful if there was a way of compiling statistics relating to the number of visitors Ross attracts and how much they spend. She said that a recent mini walking festival organised by Walkers are Welcome resulted in a spend of £8,500 on hotel rooms alone.

The Christmas Carnival, which is a long standing Ross tradition, was another recipient of a Town Council grant.

Another well-known organisation which has been running in Ross since 1924 is the Town Band. They needed a grant for new books so that they can all play the same piece together. Rob Mason said that he is grateful to the Council, not only for the grant but also for organising Bands in the Park which also attracts new people to Ross.

Gail Harley of Ross U3A said that her group was very grateful for a grant which was enabling them to create crewel-work hangings as a gift to the town. Originally planned for the Market House they will now be hung in the Larruperz Centre so that more people can see them. They feature several symbols of the town and the surrounding area.

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