Future looks bright for Dereham Society

A long-established pressure group which has campaigned for improvements in a mid-Norfolk town for almost 40 years has been given a stay execution.

Dereham Society had been on the brink of folding ahead of its annual general meeting tonight and had issued a rallying call for members of the public to come forward and stand on its committee.

Over the years, the society has taken up issues such as traffic, green spaces, community facilities, car parking and new housing.

Dozens of people attended the meeting at Dereham's library on High Street, many of whom spoke in favour of the society and said how they would like the group to remain in existence.

The meeting gave people the chance to raise their concerns about Dereham, to hear about the neighbourhood plan and to say how the group had to engage with the town through the use of social media.

Younger members of the community also said how they had not heard of the group before and would like to find out more about the society, its role in the town and what would be expected of them if they were to stand on the executive committee.

The meeting was adjourned until next month to enable people to find out more about Dereham Society before they commit themselves as officers.

A follow up meeting will be held on Thursday, March 26 at Dereham Library.

Chairman Philip Morton said he was encouraged by the turn out and was confident that Dereham Society had a future.

He said: 'I'm really encouraged to see younger people with different ideas, that's the way forward. Having had a core of people here that have the interest and enthusiasm suggests there is the will for it to go forward.

'I think looking at things like the neighbourhood plan, there is a role to play particularly as people are having to do more for themselves locally.'

For more information about the Dereham Society, visit http://derehamsociety.blogspot.co.uk.