Volunteer Groups
The volunteer groups are vital to our village. If you are interested in joining one of our groups please contact the Clerk, the lead person listed or any Councillor.
Volunteers are covered by the Council's Insurance provided they confirm to policies agreed by Council and do not act independently.
Composting
Geldeston Community Composting Group
Following an initiative set up by Norfolk County Council to reduce recyclable waste in landfill, some ‘keen greens’ in Geldeston in 2006 formed a community composting group. NCC pay per tonne of compostable waste collected, and the money raised is used through the parish council for projects that benefit the village as a whole. Some of the initial start-up members of the group are still collecting and composting, and newcomers are most welcome for as much or little time as they can spare. Some jobs are neither heavy nor dirty – keeping records, making coffee, organising rotas, but also there is free training to become a master composter for those interested.
We are always glad to hear from new households wishing to join scheme by bagging up their green waste for the group to collect. Compost is collected from the households on the list on Monday mornings from April-October most years. Ideally the waste is sorted into three sections, garden and vegetable trimmings, grass cuttings, and dry stuff such as shredded paper, pet bedding, feathers and ash.
The composting routine involves weighing bags collected and layering the contents into bins to start the process, guided by our master composters. The bins are turned and in two or three months we have our finished product. The volunteers take some, and householders in the scheme are warmly urged to take home our product in their own containers, or filled by us if requested, in exchange for a small donation towards protective gear and tools.
All are welcome at the site around 11 am on a Monday morning, do join us for a cup of composters’ coffee or tea, take some compost or watch what we do.
GREEN project
There is currently a vacancy for a Green Project Leader. Please contact the Clerk, if you are interested!
For many years the Parish Council has rented a playing field on Station Road from the local Poors Allotment Trust. In earlier times this was used for playing football and Geldeston softball. This activity fell away and in 2010 the Council approved a proposal for the field to be turned into a multi-function space for the enjoyment of local people.
This became know as the GREEN project, an acronym for Garden • Recreation • Environment • Education • a Nice place to meet.
The project successfully applied to WREN and the Broads Authority’s Sustainable Development Fund for grant money to install a rabbit fence and new gate, replenish the hedges and plant an orchard. Apart from the fencing and water installation, all the work has been done by a small band of volunteers.
A later development was the creation of an allotment area.
Over 1000 hedge plants have been planted together with a small orchard. Volunteers continue to manage the new planting.
From 2016, the path around the field is maintained by Clinks Care Farm. The Station Road hedge and the whole field is cut annually through the generosity of a local farmer.